What does "mischief" mean?
Mischief: The practice whereof shall, I hope, secure me from many mischiefs. Fuller.
Additional senses
- 2.Cause of trouble or vexation; trouble. Milton. The mischief was, these allies would never allow that the common enemy was subdued. Swift. To be in mischief, to be doing harm or causing annoyance. -- To make mischief, to do mischief, especially by exciting quarrels. -- To play the mischief, to cause great harm; to throw into confusion. [Colloq.] -- Mischief, Damage, Harm. Damage is an injury which diminishes the value of a thing; harm is an injury which causes trouble or inconvenience; mischief is an injury which disturbs the order and consistency of things. We often suffer damage or harm from accident, but mischief always springs from perversity or folly.
- 3.To do harm to. [Obs.] Milton.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00