mischief
mis·chief/ˈmɪsˌt͡ʃiːf/noun
mischief is spelled M-I-S-C-H-I-E-F: 8 letters and 2 syllables (mis·chief). It appears 2.3 times per million words in written English, the 18,064th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, mischief means “Conduct that playfully causes petty annoyance” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of mischief is mischiefs.
How many letters and syllables are in mischief?
| Letters | 8: M-I-S-C-H-I-E-F |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: mis·chief |
| In writing | 2.3 times per million words; the 18,064th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is mischief?
Mischief appears 2.3 times per million words in written English, the 18,064th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce mischief?
- UK /ˈmɪsˌt͡ʃiːf/
- UK [ˈmɪsˌt͡ʃʰɪi̯f]
- UK /ˈmɪs.t͡ʃɪf/
Mischief has 2 syllables, split mis·chief in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-mischief.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Simplificationalizer-mischief.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of mischief
- mischiefs plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- mischiefing participle, present
- mischiefed participle, past
- mischieve
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does mischief mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Conduct that playfully causes petty annoyance.
Drink led to mischief.
- 2
A playfully annoying action.
John's mischief, tying his shoelaces together, irked George at first.
- 3
A nest or pack of mice or rats.
- 4
archaicHarm or trouble caused by an agent or brought about by a particular cause.
She had mischief in her heart.
- 5
archaicAn injury or an instance of harm or trouble caused by a person or other agent or cause.
It may end in her doing a great mischief to herself–and perhaps to others too.
- 6
A criminal offence defined in various ways in various jurisdictions, sometimes including causing damage to another's property.
- 7
archaicA cause or agent of annoyance, harm or injury, especially a person who causes mischief.
- 8
The Devil; used as an expletive.
verb
- 1
obsoleteTo do a mischief to; to harm.
- 2
obsoleteTo slander.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Mischief in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | espièglerie, bêtise , polissonnerie , espiègle , méfait |
| German | Unfug, Unheil, Querulantentum , Aufruhr |
| Portuguese | travessura , dano , travesso |
| Spanish | travesura, diablura, gamberrada , daño |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does mischief come from?
From Middle English myschef, meschef, meschief, mischef, from Old French meschief, from meschever (“to bring to grief”), from mes- (“badly”) + chever (“happen; come to a head”), from Vulgar Latin *capare, from Latin caput (“head”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).