puckish

English

WOTD – 26 April 2007

Etymology

From Puck +‎ -ish, after the mischievous fairy in English folklore who is also a character in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈpʌkɪʃ/
  • Audio (US):(file)

Adjective

puckish (comparative more puckish, superlative most puckish)

  1. Mischievous, impudent, sly; excessively playful.
  2. Extremely playful, especially in a mischievous manner.
  3. Having a tendency to play jokes on people, play tricks on people or tease people by making silly jokes about them.
    He has a puckish sense of humor.
    She has a puckish attitude.
    He has a puckish grin.
    They are so puckish for their love of practical jokes.
    • 2007 April 2, John Cassidy, “The Next Crusade”, in The New Yorker‎[1]:
      Wolfowitz spoke softly to Yasa, who evidently had no idea who he was but responded with a puckish smile.
    • 2023 October 29, Zoe Williams, “‘An ironic, self-deprecating metrosexual’: how Matthew Perry captured the spirit of the age”, in The Guardian‎[2], →ISSN:
      “Chandler Bing,” wrote Matthew Perry in his puckish, self-mocking memoir, “changed the way that America spoke”.

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