Literary notes about mischievious (AI summary)
In literature, "mischievious" functions as a marker of sly playfulness and a subtle critique of behavior. Writers evoke its connotations through evocative character traits—a beguiling accent or a roguish smile that hints at hidden depths [1][2]—or by attributing it to creatures and figures known for their cunning, such as monkeys or even deities [3][4]. Its usage also enters the realm of linguistic debate, as some authors address its pronunciation and orthographic evolution, underscoring the gap between common speech and careful enunciation [5][6].
- Her accent was mischievious, but there was the fire of rubies in her eyes.
— from In the Roaring Fifties by Edward Dyson - He returns with the mischievious smile, and says: "There, Verty!
— from The Last of the Foresters Or, Humors on the Border; A story of the Old Virginia Frontier by John Esten Cooke - There never wasn’t a monkey more mischievious than him; and a donkey isn’t more stupider and not half so obstinate as that youngster.”
— from The Comic English Grammar: A New and Facetious Introduction to the English Tongue by Percival Leigh - They did not know what to do, but at last concluded that their powerful but mischievious god Keremet must be angry at being unmarried.
— from The Golden Bough: A Study of Magic and Religion by James George Frazer - Pronounce mischievous with the accent on mis , and not on chie , and do not say mischievious .
— from Conversation: Its Faults and Its Graces - “You are very mischievous :” pronounce mischievous with the accent on mis , and not on chie , and do not say mischievious ( mis-cheev-yus ).
— from Five Hundred Mistakes of Daily Occurrence in Speaking, Pronouncing, and Writing the English Language, Corrected by Walton Burgess
