Other forms: mischiefs
Mischief is playful behaviour that causes small trouble. Get up to mischief, a look of mischief, keep out of mischief.
It is affectionate about children and rather less so about adults. In law, criminal mischief is a name for damage to property in some jurisdictions, which is far heavier than the everyday sense. The Old French means to come to grief.
1nounmischiefPlayful behaviour that causes small trouble.
“The twins are always getting into mischief when their parents aren't looking.”
mischief is a behaviour.
Old French meschever means to come to grief — mes-, badly, plus chever, to happen.
Latin
caput — head
Vulgar Latin
*capare
Old French
meschief
Middle English
myschef
English, today
mischief
Built from
From Middle English myschef, meschef, meschief, mischef, from Old French meschief, from meschever (“to bring to grief”), from mes- (“badly”) + chever (“happen; come to a head”), from Vulgar Latin capare, from Latin caput (“head”).
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA