to give the devil his due
1
8.1
- idiom
:
dar a César lo que es de César
- Although I often criticize her decisions, I must give the devil his due for her innovative ideas.
Well, and I think, I think that's a real mistake because it it's we're no, we're not giving the devil his due.
- Well, and I think, I think that's a real mistake because it it's we're no, we're not giving the devil his due.
Examples
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Time to give the devil his due.
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Sure, give the devil his due.
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To use the old term, you have to give the devil his due.
Blog text (21) -
You are giving the devil his due.
Blog text (15) -
Give the devil his due.
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Look, folks, you've got to give the devil his due.
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Even though I disagree with his methods, I have to give the devil his due and acknowledge his success.
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She didn't like his attitude, but she knew she should give the devil his due for his hard work on the project.
Synonyms
43
4.6
Praise someone for doing something well
Antonyms
How Complimentary
Surface Forms
Morphology
give + the + devil + his + due
The meaning is directly derivable from composing 'give' (to grant), 'devil' (a figuratively bad or disliked person) and 'due' (what is deserved): it literally means to grant even a disliked person what they deserve. The construction 'give X his/their due' is a regular, compositional pattern in English and cross-linguistically transparent, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words should infer the meaning.
Etymology
The saying give the devil his due comes from the image of giving someone what they deserve, even the devil, because due means what is owed. One popular story says people used that picture to remind others to admit a person's good points even if they do not like them, so today it means 'to acknowledge someone's good qualities even if you do not approve'.