roguish

[ roh-gish ]

adjective

1. playfully mischievous:

   a roguish smile.

2. pertaining to, characteristic of, or acting like a rogue; knavish or unscrupulous.

roguish

/ ˈrəʊɡɪʃ /

adjective

1. dishonest or unprincipled
2. mischievous or arch

Derived Forms

• ˈroguishness, noun
• ˈroguishly, adverb

Other Words From

• ro·guish·ly adverb
• ro·guish·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of roguish¹

First recorded in 1565–75; rogue + -ish ¹

Example Sentences

Earlier, on the way into her village, we drove past a jodhpur-clad gent on a horse, who gave us a roguish, charming smile.

From BBC

Some rap fans see West as a roguish outlaw who beat cancel culture.

From Los Angeles Times

In “The Crown,” he played a roguish friend of Prince Philip; he was the unreliable father of Dr. Jean Milburn’s baby on “Sex Education” and the resentful husband on Lucy Prebble’s “I Hate Suzie.”

From New York Times

High rents and the pandemic were an unexpected boon to the city’s DIY art and literary scene — from roguish takeovers at Ikea to guerrilla readings in parking lots — meshing cultural events that fall somewhere between a kegger and 21st-century salon.

From Los Angeles Times

Starring alongside her is Ed Skrein, who plays the main villain Admiral Atticus Noble, and Charlie Hunnam who plays Kai, a roguish pilot and smuggler.

From BBC

Related Words

• devilish
• impish
• playful
• sly