devil take the hindmost, the

Idioms & Phrases

devil take the hindmost, the

Let everyone put his or her own interest first, leaving the unfortunate to their fate. For example, I don't care if she makes it or notthe devil take the hindmost. This expression, first recorded in 1608, probably originated as an allusion to a children's game in which the last (coming "hindmost") is the loser, and came to mean utter selfishness.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Devil take the hindmost, the is always a great word to know.
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