MISCHIEF

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does mischief mean? 

• MISCHIEF (noun)
  The noun MISCHIEF has 2 senses:

1. reckless or malicious behavior that causes discomfort or annoyance in others

2. the quality or nature of being harmful or evil

  Familiarity information: MISCHIEF used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• MISCHIEF (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Reckless or malicious behavior that causes discomfort or annoyance in others

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

devilment; devilry; deviltry; mischief; mischief-making; mischievousness; rascality; roguery; roguishness; shenanigan

Hypernyms ("mischief" is a kind of...):

misbehavior; misbehaviour; misdeed (improper or wicked or immoral behavior)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "mischief"):

blaze; hell (noisy and unrestrained mischief)

monkey business (mischievous or deceitful behavior)

hooliganism; malicious mischief; vandalism (willful wanton and malicious destruction of the property of others)

Derivation:

mischievous (deliberately causing harm or damage)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The quality or nature of being harmful or evil

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

balefulness; maleficence; mischief

Hypernyms ("mischief" is a kind of...):

evil; evilness (the quality of being morally wrong in principle or practice)

Attribute:

maleficent (harmful or evil in intent or effect)

Derivation:

mischievous (deliberately causing harm or damage)

 Context examples 

Everyone thought the matter ended and the little cloud blown over, but the mischief was done, for though others forgot it, Meg remembered.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

“Egad, Doctor,” returned Mr. Wickfield, “if Doctor Watts knew mankind, he might have written, with as much truth, “Satan finds some mischief still, for busy hands to do.”

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

I never heard of a crew that meant to mutiny but what showed signs before, for any man that had an eye in his head to see the mischief and take steps according.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

Alleyne hastened on, lest he make more mischief, and his heart was heavy as lead within him.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Fear not that I shall be the instrument of future mischief.

(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)

She had got a start, however, and before I could catch her, the mischief was done.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Our two traitors had been destroyed, but the mischief that they had done lived after them.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

How could he tell what mischief he might be doing?

(Emma, by Jane Austen)

And only made believe to do so for mischief's sake?

(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)

I had been too deeply concerned in the mischief to be soon at peace.

(Persuasion, by Jane Austen)