as in mischievous
tending to or exhibiting reckless playfulness
a knavish bunch of urchins racing pell-mell through the marketplace
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of knavish
Wells could be playful, knavish, and his tone here is one of urgency and optimism about the distribution of information.
—
BostonGlobe.com, 30 July 2021
The same people who are now telling us that only Republican-voting obscurantists, ignorant deplorables and knavish right-wing media pundits are raising doubts about the vaccine would have been oozing skepticism.
—Gerard Baker, WSJ, 12 July 2021
BostonGlobe.com, 30 July 2021
The same people who are now telling us that only Republican-voting obscurantists, ignorant deplorables and knavish right-wing media pundits are raising doubts about the vaccine would have been oozing skepticism.
—Gerard Baker, WSJ, 12 July 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for knavish
Adjective
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The sophisticated audiences of 2025 require a little more grit, more mischievous fun.—
Rachel Elspeth Gross,
Forbes.com,
28 June 2025
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Zada lives up to the mischievous troublemaker in Lockhart’s book.—
Clare Mulroy,
USA Today,
19 June 2025
Adjective
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People used to hang iron on their doors to keep fae and other wicked spirits out at night.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
27 June 2025
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What makes the series so delightful is Osman’s wicked sense of humor, and the empathy suffused throughout.—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
25 June 2025
Adjective
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But playful, electronic reimaginings of Grandma’s feel-good tunes and funny pop culture sound bites weren’t getting us anywhere past Havre de Grace.—
Andre Gee,
Rolling Stone,
23 June 2025
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Rowan is a funny, playful, and high-spirited young boy who keeps everyone around him smiling.—
MARE Staff,
Boston Herald,
22 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Knavish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/knavish. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.
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