as in mischievous
tending to or exhibiting reckless playfulness
the gang of impish children ran into the street, utterly oblivious to the traffic
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Recent Examples of impish
For his last songs of the night at nearly 1 a.m., the entire day’s lineup of performers joined him onstage, and his characteristically impish smile back at them was really something special.
—
Jared Kaufman, Twin Cities, 21 Sep. 2025
Despite the austerity of her ambitions, there are moments of lush imagination that leaven the tone somewhat, like a dream sequence in which Teresa, furiously making bread in the middle of the night, is teased by an impish child.
—Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 27 Aug. 2025
With an impish grin, the young star carried the film with the confidence of actors four times his age, landing a Golden Globe nomination for his efforts.
—EW.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Jude is an erudite man of the people whose hyper-literate intellectualism is only matched by his Chaucer-like vulgarity, and his work has long reveled in an impish fascination with the relationship between art, labor, and technology.
—David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 11 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for impish
Jared Kaufman, Twin Cities, 21 Sep. 2025
Despite the austerity of her ambitions, there are moments of lush imagination that leaven the tone somewhat, like a dream sequence in which Teresa, furiously making bread in the middle of the night, is teased by an impish child.
—Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 27 Aug. 2025
With an impish grin, the young star carried the film with the confidence of actors four times his age, landing a Golden Globe nomination for his efforts.
—EW.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Jude is an erudite man of the people whose hyper-literate intellectualism is only matched by his Chaucer-like vulgarity, and his work has long reveled in an impish fascination with the relationship between art, labor, and technology.
—David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 11 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for impish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impish
Adjective
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Clearly, Rascal lived up to his mischievous name by finding the well in the first place.—
TJ Macias,
Miami Herald,
29 Oct. 2025
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Mykal-Michelle Harris from Raven’s Home guest-stars as Ruby, a mischievous moon imp who tricks Vee.—
Allison McClain Merrill,
Parents,
27 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The Wicker Man boasts a conclusion that is one of the most haunting and disturbing climaxes to a horror film in any era, but the inclusion of Lee as the wicked Lord Summerisle is a casting coup.—
Steven Thrash,
Entertainment Weekly,
19 Oct. 2025
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Misiorowski had made Edman look foolish in their first matchup, getting the infielder to swing through a wicked curveball.—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
17 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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And based on the tight bonds he's formed with his costars (not to mention lots of playful, platonic PDA), the feeling is very mutual.—
Julie Jordan,
PEOPLE,
4 Nov. 2025
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Outfielder Kiké Hernández had some fun at Drake’s expense and took a playful shot at Drizzy when addressing the Dodger Stadium crowd on the mic.—
Michael Saponara,
Billboard,
4 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Impish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impish. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
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