- inclined to acts of mischief
- teasing; slightly malicious
- causing or intended to cause harm
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
mis•chie•vous /ˈmɪstʃəvəs/USA pronunciation
adj.
mis•chie•vous•ness, n. [uncountable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- maliciously or playfully annoying:The mischievous boys stole apples from the neighbor's tree.
- slyly teasing:a mischievous look.
- harmful;
causing trouble.
mis•chie•vous•ness, n. [uncountable]
mis•chie•vous
(mis′chə vəs),USA pronunciation adj.
mis′chie•vous•ly, adv.
mis′chie•vous•ness, n.
- maliciously or playfully annoying.
- causing annoyance, harm, or trouble.
- roguishly or slyly teasing, as a glance.
- harmful or injurious.
- Anglo-French meschevous. See mischief, -ous
- 1300–50; Middle English mischevous
mis′chie•vous•ness, n.
- Pronunciations of mischievous with stress on the second syllable:
(mis chē′vē əs)USA pronunciation or, less commonly,
(mis chē′vəs),USA pronunciation instead of on the first:
(mis′chə vəs),USA pronunciation are usually considered nonstandard. The pronunciation
(mis chē′vē əs),USA pronunciation with the additional syllable, occurs by analogy with such words as previous and devious.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
mischievous /ˈmɪstʃɪvəs/ adj
'mischievous' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
arch
- bad
- bogey
- devil
- devilment
- elf
- elfish
- escapade
- gremlin
- hobgoblin
- imp
- impish
- impudent
- jackanapes
- jinks
- kobold
- larky
- larrikin
- leprechaun
- limb
- malicious
- mischief
- monkey
- monkey business
- monkey tricks
- naughty
- pickle
- prank
- puck
- rascal
- rascality
- ringleader
- rogue
- roguery
- roguish
- scamp
- scapegrace
- sly
- trick
- tricksy
- urchin
- wicked
- confederate
- demon
- deviltry
- dido
- elfin
- fairy
- gamine
- glare