The phrase "What the dickens" is an intensified form of simple "what...?" questions, used as an exclamation of surprise, impatience, irritation, etc. . It has nothing to do with Charles Dickens, as it was used by Shakespeare in The Merry Wives of Windsor. The word "dickens" was originally a euphemism for the word "devil". It is believed that the word "dickens" evolved from the term "devilkin" or "deilkin" (little devil), but there is no evidence to support this. The surname "Dickens" may have had something to do with the usage of the word.