mischievous

adjective

mis·chie·vous ˈmis-chə-vəs

ˈmish-;

nonstandard

mis-ˈchē-vē-əs

mish-

Synonyms of mischievous next

: harmful, injurious

mischievous gossip

: able or tending to cause annoyance, trouble, or minor injury

: irresponsibly playful

mischievous behavior

mischievously adverb

mischievousness noun

Mischievous vs. Mischievious: Usage Guide

A pronunciation \mis-ˈchē-vē-əs\ and a consequent spelling mischievious are of long standing: evidence for the spelling goes back to the 16th century. Our pronunciation files contain modern attestations ranging from dialect speakers to Herbert Hoover. But both the pronunciation and the spelling are still considered nonstandard.

Examples of mischievous in a Sentence

In passing the test of killing itself if infected, cancerous or genetically mischievous, a cell by definition dies. —

Matt Ridley, Genome, 1999

… Pedro Martinez, could be found in the dugout, usually wearing sneakers instead of spikes, his tongue flying about as fiercely as one of his mischievous fastballs. —

Tom Verducci, Sports Illustrated, 11 Oct. 1999

Setsu grew, too, from a mischievous, laughing little girl into a gay, willful, pretty girl. —

Pearl S. Buck, The Big Wave, 1947

the children had been so mischievous that we had to pay the babysitter extra and then clean up the mess punished for their mischievous tricks on the neighbors

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Travelers in search of mischievous chimps will soon be able to stay at River Station, an eco-chic camp built by Wildplaces Africa near Kyambura, while Great Lakes Safaris is constructing Padibi Lodge on the site of a former Jane Goodall research center in Budongo. —

Alexandra Owens, Robb Report, 23 Jan. 2025 The video, which went viral on TikTok, shows Brandon cheekily explaining his mischievous plan. —

Ashley Vega, People.com, 21 Jan. 2025 My brother navigated the single-lane, snaking roads with a mischievous, childlike grin. —

Sara Lieberman, Travel + Leisure, 21 Jan. 2025 In 1997, during a Monday night game against the San Francisco 49ers, one mischievous Eagles fan shot a flare gun into the stands full of other fans, endangering multiple lives. —

Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 18 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for mischievous