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mischief

 - 4 dictionary results

mis⋅chief

  [mis-chif]
Use mischief in a Sentence
–noun
1. conduct or activity that playfully causes petty annoyance.
2. a tendency or disposition to tease, vex, or annoy.
3. a vexatious or annoying action.
4. harm or trouble, esp. as a result of an agent or cause.
5. an injury or evil caused by a person or other agent or cause.
6. a cause or source of harm, evil, or annoyance.
7. the devil.
Origin:
1250–1300; ME meschef < OF, n. deriv. of meschever to end badly, come to grief. See mis- 1 , achieve

Synonyms:
4. hurt. See damage.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To mischief
mis·chief   (mĭs'chĭf)   
n.  

  1. Behavior that causes discomfiture or annoyance in another.

  2. An inclination or tendency to play pranks or cause embarrassment.

  3. One that causes minor trouble or disturbance: The child was a mischief in school.

  4. Damage, destruction, or injury caused by a specific person or thing: The broken window was the mischief of vandals.

  5. The state or quality of being mischievous.


[Middle English mischef, from Old French meschief, misfortune, from meschever, to end badly : mes-, badly; see mis-1 + chever, to happen, come to an end (from Vulgar Latin *capāre, to come to a head, from *capum, head, from Latin caput; see kaput- in Indo-European roots).]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

mischief 
c.1300, "evil condition, misfortune, need, want," from O.Fr. meschief (Fr. méchef), verbal noun from meschever "come or bring to grief, be unfortunate" (opposite of achieve), from mes- "badly" (see mis- (2)) + chever "happen, come to a head," from V.L. *capare "head," from L. caput "head" (see head). Meaning "harm or evil considered as the work of some agent or due to some cause" is from 1480. Sense of "playful malice" first recorded 1784. Mischief Night in 19c. England was the eve of May Day and of Nov. 5, both major holidays, and perhaps the original point was pilfering for the next day's celebration and bonfire; but in Yorkshire, Scotland, and Ireland the night was Halloween. The useful M.E. verb mischieve (c.1330) has, for some reason, fallen from currency.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Idioms & Phrases

mischief

see make mischief.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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