naughty

adjective

naugh·​ty ˈnȯ-tē  ˈnä- 

naughtier; naughtiest

1

a

: guilty of disobedience or misbehavior

a naughty child

b

archaic : vicious in moral character : wicked

2

: lacking in taste or propriety

No naughty jokes in front of the children, please!

naughtily

ˈnȯ-tə-lē 

ˈnä-

adverb

naughtiness

ˈnȯ-tē-nəs 

ˈnä-

noun

Synonyms

• mischievous
• bad

Examples of naughty in a Sentence

She gave him a naughty smile.

told her to act her age and stop throwing temper tantrums like a naughty little girl

Recent Examples on the Web

The clip reveals one of the creator's dogs being good, while the other is hilariously naughty. —Maria Morava, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Sep. 2025

An initial jolt of spicy pink pepper dissipates to reveal a rose dripping in honeyed, ambery sweetness, while its leathery base adds strength, dimension, and something a little bit naughty to this fruity-floral triumph of a scent. —Sophia Panych, Allure, 16 Sep. 2025

Park Station is now open on the island a few blocks from the beach, serving suds, live music and kind-of-naughty comfort food. —John Metcalfe, Mercury News, 13 Sep. 2025

Now, the hit show is getting a naughty makeover as a musical. —Leah Olajide, Freep.com, 4 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English noughti, from nought

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Rhymes for naughty

• dotty
• doughty
• draughty
• haughty
• knotty
• potty
• scottie
• spotty
• strati
• zloty
• basmati
• bharati

Kids Definition

naughty

adjective

naugh·​ty ˈnȯt-ē 

ˈnät-

naughtier; naughtiest

: behaving badly or improperly

naughtily

ˈnȯt-ᵊl-ē 

ˈnät-

adverb

naughtiness

ˈnȯt-ē-nəs 

ˈnät-

noun