as in mischievous
tending to or exhibiting reckless playfulness
he takes a puckish delight in teasing her about her love life, or lack thereof
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of puckish
Returned now to his old stomping ground, with his broken dove girlfriend Helen and his sweet natured pal Rudy in-tow, the puckish Francis wanders the desolate city streets trailed by visions of the dead.
—
Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 9 Dec. 2025
To that eclectic backdrop, the Talking Heads frontman applies his usual puckish wit to matters of love, connection, and other quandaries of existence, assisted by Paramore’s Hayley Williams, St. Vincent, and the Smile’s Tom Skinner.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 5 Sep. 2025
And chuckled with Spicy, Austin’s own puckish cartoonist.
—Steve Sewall, Chicago Tribune, 18 Aug. 2025
Like End of the Century, Castro’s latest is both sexy and surprisingly cosmic, but this time with a casual, puckish charm.
—Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 7 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for puckish
Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 9 Dec. 2025
To that eclectic backdrop, the Talking Heads frontman applies his usual puckish wit to matters of love, connection, and other quandaries of existence, assisted by Paramore’s Hayley Williams, St. Vincent, and the Smile’s Tom Skinner.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 5 Sep. 2025
And chuckled with Spicy, Austin’s own puckish cartoonist.
—Steve Sewall, Chicago Tribune, 18 Aug. 2025
Like End of the Century, Castro’s latest is both sexy and surprisingly cosmic, but this time with a casual, puckish charm.
—Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 7 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for puckish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for puckish
Adjective
-
Roy interjected with the mischievous smirk typical of a younger brother trying to ruffle some feathers.—
Carlos Aguilar,
Los Angeles Times,
15 June 2026
-
The new set will let builders assemble the mischievous supernatural messenger and his watchful bird companion.—
Jazz Tangcay,
Variety,
15 June 2026
Adjective
-
Philadelphia already boasts a wicked rotation with Cristopher Sanchez, Zack Wheeler and Jesus Luzardo.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
16 June 2026
-
Spark, who was born in 1918 and died in 2006, had a talent for writing wicked little books that defy easy categorization; her coming-of-age stories feel like horror stories, her horror stories feel like love stories, and her love stories feel like acid satire.—
Rachel Syme,
New Yorker,
10 June 2026
Adjective
-
The Rabbit Hole is more playful, with its games room, pool table, ping pong and private bar, seemingly designed for long nights and bad decisions.—
Arion McNicoll,
TheWeek,
15 June 2026
-
The result was a sleek white ruffled top, when worn with matching trousers felt both modern and refreshing while another floral skirt embodied a playful feminine energy that personified warm weather dressing.—
Diana Tsui,
Footwear News,
15 June 2026
Adjective
-
The gulf between their two worlds is wide, and Jude straddles it with wide-ranging intellect and his characteristic impish wit, while also telling a surprisingly heartfelt story about the lengths to which a mother will go for love.—
Christopher Vourlias,
Variety,
11 June 2026
-
When Pirog played a flashy line, which was often, Vile let out a cackle, an impish, cowpoke whoopee ti-yi-yo.—
Nick Paumgarten,
New Yorker,
8 June 2026
Adjective
-
Angela Balogh Calin’s costumes prepare the way for Ionesco’s prankish jokes.—
Theater Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
13 May 2026
-
Caltech is a sort of nerd Valhalla, where brilliant and creative youngsters study and engage in prankish mischief.—
Graeme Wood,
The Atlantic,
26 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Puckish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/puckish. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
