impish en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- /ˈɪmpɪʃ/
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
Etymology tree English imp Proto-Indo-European *-iskos Proto-Germanic *-iskaz Proto-West Germanic *-isk Old English -isċ Middle English -isch English -ish English impish From imp + -ish.
Meanings
-
Mischievous; of or befitting an imp.
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: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: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:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| most impish | Degree=Sup | lexicographic | |
| more impish | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic |
Deriveds
Synonyms
prankish (naughtily or annoyingly playful) · puckish (naughtily or annoyingly playful) · mischievous (naughtily or annoyingly playful) · pixilated (naughtily or annoyingly playful) · implike (naughtily or annoyingly playful)
Translations (37)
gl pillo (mischievous) · gl lagarteiro (mischievous) · gl pillabán (mischievous) · fi ilkikurinen (mischievous) · gl traste (mischievous) · pt travesso (mischievous) · bg палав (mischievous) · nl ondeugend (mischievous) · gl zolado (mischievous) · gl zarapelo (mischievous) · hu huncut (mischievous) · de schelmisch (mischievous) · gl pícaro (mischievous) · hu csintalan (mischievous) · it maligno (mischievous) · gl aduaneiro (mischievous) · gl traveso (mischievous) · gl raposeiro (mischievous) · fr malicieux (mischievous) · fr espiègle (mischievous) · pt levado (mischievous) · de koboldhaft (mischievous) · hu pajkos (mischievous) · eo petolema (mischievous) · gl cazurro (mischievous) · la diabolullicus (mischievous) · ca entremaliat (mischievous) · de spitzbübisch (mischievous) · it malevolo (mischievous) · gl loubán (mischievous) · es pícaro (mischievous) · bg немирен (mischievous) · es travieso (mischievous) · el διαβολικός (mischievous) · gl falcatrueiro (mischievous) · cy direidus (mischievous) · fr mutin (mischievous)