Note: the Hindi and Sanskrit paths disagree here — the Sanskrit dictionary reading is negative (“evil”) while the Hindi reading is not. Both are shown below; read them together before choosing.
As a deity name
Name 14 of the Gopal Sahasranāma — Sammohana Tantra, as taught by Lord Shiva to Goddess Parvati
Name 33 of the Hanuman Sahasranāma — Rasvin Samhita / Brahmanda Purana, as taught by Lord Ram / Sages
Name 155 of the Hanuman Sahasranāma — Rasvin Samhita / Brahmanda Purana, as taught by Lord Ram / Sages
Name 15 of the Krishna Sahasranāma — Mahabharata / Padma Purana, as taught by Sages and Devotees
As a Hindi name
Note: the Hindi and Sanskrit paths disagree here — the Sanskrit dictionary reading is negative (“evil”) while the Hindi reading is not. Both are shown below; read them together before choosing.
देव · noun · masculine
स्वर्ग में रहने या क्रीड़ा करनेवाला अमर प्राणी । दिव्य शरीर धारी । देवता । सुर · पूज्य व्यक्ति · तेजोमय व्यक्ति — Śabdasāgara
देव · adj
देव संबंधी । देवों से संबद्ध · स्वर्गिक । स्वर्गीय । स्वर्गसंबंधी · संमान्य । पूज्य । आदरणीय — Śabdasāgara
देव · deva · s.m.
(f. -ī), A deity, god — Platts (1884), digital edition courtesy DSAL, University of Chicago, p. 559
देव · masculine
a male given name, Dev, from Sanskrit
देव · masculine
deity, god, deva
a Hindi word; it is not Sanskrit
“Learned borrowing from Sanskrit देव (deva), from Proto-Indo-Iranian *daywás, from Proto-Indo-European *deywós, from *dyew- + *-ós.” — per Wiktionary’s etymology record
As a Sanskrit word
Meaning
(pl. the gods as the heavenly or shining ones; viśve devās, all the gods, &c., or a partic. class of deities [see under viśva], often reckoned as 33, either 11 for each of the 3 wo…
Scripturally attested Verified derivationMultiple readings (12)Why this matches what you typed
M1 · same meaning "deva" is the vocative of "devā" — the same word in a different grammatical case.
M1 · same meaning "deva" is the vocative of "devan" — the same word in a different grammatical case.
Related forms
Dictionary citations
deva mf(ī)n. (fr. 3. div) heavenly, divine (also said of terrestrial things of high excellence), RV.; AV.; VS.; ŚBr. (superl. m. deva-tama, RV. iv, 22, 3 &c.; f. devi-tamā, ii, 41, 16)
deva m. (according to Pāṇ. iii, 3, 120 deva) a deity, god, RV. &c. &c.
(rarely applied to) evil demons, AV. iii, 15, 5; TS. iii, 5, 4, 1
(pl. the gods as the heavenly or shining ones; viśve devās, all the gods, RV. ii, 3, 4 &c., or a partic. class of deities [see under viśva], often reckoned as 33, either 11 for each of the 3 worlds, RV. i, 139, 11 &c. [cf. tri-daśa], or 8 Vasus, 11 Rudras, and 12 Ādityas [to which the 2 Aśvins must be added] Br.; cf. also, Divyāv. 68; with Jainas 4 classes, viz. bhavanādhīśa, vyantara, jyotiṣka, and vaimānika; devānām patnyas, the wives of the gods, RV.; VS.; Br. [cf. deva-patnī below])
N. of the number 33 (see above), Gaṇit.
devā (ā), f. Hibiscus Mutabilis or Marsilea Quadrifolia
devan m. brother-in-law (= devṛ), L.
devan m. The younger brother of a husband.
Alternative readings
More than one analysis survives full verification. That ambiguity is real, so we show every reading rather than pick one silently.
Caveats
Sources contain errors and engines have limits; every claim above carries its citation so you can verify it. This is guidance about names and their sources — not religious or astrological consultation. How we work · Our sources