'she-devil' originates from English as a compound of 'she' + 'devil', where 'devil' ultimately comes from Latin 'diabolus' via Old English and Middle English.

'diabolus' (Greek 'diabolos') became Latin 'diabolus', rendered in Old English as 'deofol' and Middle English as 'devil'; the modern English noun 'devil' combined with the pronoun 'she' to form the compound 'she-devil' in early modern English usage.

Initially 'devil' meant an evil spirit; over time it was used figuratively of wicked or vicious people, and 'she-devil' evolved to mean specifically a wicked, cruel, or fiercely unpleasant woman.