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Devilry; sorcery or incantation; a diabolical deed; mischief.

To fail to serve; to do injury or mischief to; to damage; to hurt; to harm. Have neither served nor disserved the interests of any party. Jer. Taylor.

Injury; mischief. We shall rather perform good offices unto truth than any disservice unto their relators. Sir T. Browne.

[Obs.] "Seek peace, and ensue it." 1 Pet. iii. 11. To ensue his example in doing the like mischief. Golding.

ication, in German and Scandinavian mythology, of a spirit natural power supposed to work mischief and ruin, esp. to children.

Having qualities tending to injury and mischief; having a nature or properties which tend to badness; mischievous; not good; worthless or deleterious; poor; as, an evil beast; and evil plant; an evil crop. A good tree can not bring forth evil fruit. Matt. vii. 18.

Having evil dispositions or intentions; disposed to mischief or sin; malicious; malignant; wicked. -- E"vil-mind`ed*ness, n.

One who inflames factions, or causes contention and mischief; an incendiary. Bacon.

ent, a compensation, or the like, is offered or made; instead of, or place of. And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot. Ex. xxi. 23, 24.

Injury; wrong; mischief. [Obs. & R.] To seek arms upon people and country that never did us any forfeit. Ld. Berners.

m by meditation, and bring into being; to originate and produce; to concoct; as, to hatch mischief; to hatch heresy. Hooker. Fancies hatched In silken-folded idleness. Tennyson.

A deception for mockery or mischief; a deceptive trick or story; a practical joke. Macaulay.

Bred at home; domestic; not foreign. " Home-bred mischief." Milton. Benignity and home-bred sense. Wordsworth.

he state or quality of being horrible; dreadfulness; hideousness. The horribleness of the mischief. Sir P. Sidney.

Injury; damage; detriment; harm; mischief. Thou dost me yet but little hurt. Shak.

cheme; to devise; to compass; to purpose. See Compass, v. t., 5. How long will ye imagine mischief against a man Ps. lxii. 3.

less; as, an improvident man. Improvident soldires! had your watch been good, This sudden mischief never could have fallen. Shak.

uit or aim; as, he was negligent in business, but industrious in pleasure; an industrious mischief maker. Industrious to seek out the truth of all things. Spenser. -- In*dus"tri*ous*ly, adv. -- In*dus"tri*ous*ness, n.

al; that which injures, or occasions wrong, loss, damage, or detriment; harm; hurt; loss; mischief; wrong; evil; as, his health was impaired by a severe injury; slander is an injury to the character. For he that doeth injury shall receve that he did evil. Wyclif(Col. iii. 25). Many times we do injury to a cause by dwel…

Harmless; doing no injury or mischief. Dryden.