impish
adj/ˈɪmpɪʃ/
Etymology From imp + -ish.
1
Mischievous; of or befitting an imp.
- Wild-eyed youngsters they were, with matted hair and little broad-nosed impish faces, covered (as some children are covered even nowadays) with a delicate down of hair.1897, H. G. Wells, chapter 1, in A Story of the Stone Age, archived from the original on 09 Mar 2012:
- But the antics of Mr. Moore, though impish and impudent, are, after all, so amusing and so graceful that the governess, it is said, sometimes hides behind a tree to watch.1942, Virginia Woolf, chapter 20, in The Death of the Moth, and other essays, archived from the original on 24 Feb 2011:
1 more example
- As per the old Jewish joke “ask two Jews, get three opinions”, there’s room on this seven-strong bill (plus [Hannah] Gadsby) for at least that many different perspectives on gender – including some impish scepticism from Canadian comic DeAnne Smith, who complains about “getting they/them’d against my will since 2005”.2023 October 13, Brian Logan, “‘We’re all learning’: why Netflix needs Hannah Gadsby’s Gender Agenda”, in The Guardian:
- Synonyms
- implike, mischievous, pixilated, prankish, puckish
- Derived terms
- impishly, impishness