impishness
Gleeful troublemaking spirit
Impishness is the quality of being mischievous in a playful, childlike way.
It suggests lighthearted troublemaking rather than malice—the spirit of pranks, teasing, and gleeful rule-bending: There was an impishness in her smile that made you wonder what she was planning.
The word evokes imps, those small demons of folklore known for causing harmless chaos.
Playful trick on someone
- trickeryDeliberate deception or fraud
- shenanigansMischievous or deceitful behavior
- tomfooleryFoolish or silly behavior
- anticsAbsurd, attention-seeking behavior
high jinks · hijinks · monkeyshines · caper · escapade · devilry · troublemaking · misbehavior
Mischievous young person
- rapscallionMischievous person, usually endearing
- rascalLovable troublemaker
- tricksterCunning deceiver in myth
- pranksterSomeone who plays tricks
scalawag · slyboots · rogue · gamin · scallywag · minx · urchin · knave
Inclined to merriment
- friskyLively and playful
- lightheartedCheerful and without worry
- sportiveFond of games
- merryCheerful and lively
sprightly · vivacious · pixieish · elfin · gamboling · prankish · teasing · jolly
prank
Playful trick on someone
- trickeryDeliberate deception or fraud
- shenanigansMischievous or deceitful behavior
- tomfooleryFoolish or silly behavior
antics · high jinks · hijinks · monkeyshines · caper · escapade · devilry · troublemaking · misbehavior · naughtiness
scamp
Mischievous young person
- rapscallionMischievous person, usually endearing
- rascalLovable troublemaker
- tricksterCunning deceiver in myth
prankster · scalawag · slyboots · rogue · gamin · scallywag · minx · urchin · knave · mischief-maker
frolicsome
Inclined to merriment
- friskyLively and playful
- lightheartedCheerful and without worry
- sportiveFond of games
merry · sprightly · vivacious · pixieish · elfin · gamboling · prankish · teasing · jolly · mirthful
cunning
Sly, scheming cleverness
crafty · mischievous · knowing · sneaky · scheming · tricky · coy · arch · subtle · calculating
capricious
Subject to sudden changes
droll · elfin · mercurial · unpredictable · zany · madcap · flighty · antic · fantastical · impulsive
- humorjoke, jokes, joking, comedy, comic
- mischiefmischief, hijinks, antics, pranks, antic
- audacityboldness, brazenness, audacity, chutzpah, gall
- Types of Humorsilliness, funniness, wittiness, corniness, zaniness
- witticismsquips, witticisms, witticism, bon mots, bon mot
- banterbanter, teasing, ribbing, joshing, kidding
impishnessobedience
Compliance with authority
compliance · docility · deference · conformity · tractability
impishnesssolemnity
Serious, dignified quality
seriousness · gravity · soberness · earnestness · staidness
impishnessinnocence
Freedom from wrongdoing
guilelessness · artlessness · saintliness · virtuousness · ingenuousness