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Peevish in Scrabble and Meaning

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What does peevish mean? Is peevish a Scrabble word?

How many points in Scrabble is peevish worth? peevish how many points in Words With Friends? What does peevish mean? Get all these answers on this page.

Scrabble® and Words with Friends® points for peevish

See how to calculate how many points for peevish.

Is peevish a Scrabble word?

Yes. The word peevish is a Scrabble US word. The word peevish is worth 15 points in Scrabble:

P3E1E1V4I1S1H4

Is peevish a Scrabble UK word?

Yes. The word peevish is a Scrabble UK word and has 15 points:

P3E1E1V4I1S1H4

Is peevish a Words With Friends word?

Yes. The word peevish is a Words With Friends word. The word peevish is worth 16 points in Words With Friends (WWF):

P4E1E1V5I1S1H3

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Results

7-letter words (1 found)

PEEVISH,

5-letter words (7 found)

HIVES,PEISE,PHESE,SHEEP,SHIVE,SIEVE,VEEPS,

4-letter words (23 found)

EISH,EVES,HEPS,HESP,HIES,HIPS,HIVE,PEES,PEHS,PHIS,PIES,PISE,PISH,SEEP,SHIP,SHIV,SIPE,SPIE,SPIV,VEEP,VEES,VIES,VISE,

3-letter words (23 found)

EHS,EVE,HEP,HES,HIE,HIP,HIS,ISH,PEE,PEH,PES,PHI,PIE,PIS,PSI,SEE,SEI,SEV,SHE,SIP,VEE,VIE,VIS,

2-letter words (10 found)

EE,EH,ES,HE,HI,IS,PE,PI,SH,SI,

1-letter words (1 found)

E,

You can make 65 words from peevish according to the Scrabble US and Canada dictionary.

Definitions and meaning of peevish

peevish

Alternative forms

  • pevish, pievish (both obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English pevische, pevisse, pevysse, peivesshe, also peyuesshe, peeuish, of obscure origin. Perhaps from Middle English pew, pue (“a plaintive cry, the cry of a bird”), equivalent to pue +‎ -ish. Cognate with Scots pevis, pevess, pevych, pevach (“peevish”), Scots pew, peu (“to cry in a plaintive manner”). See pue.

An alternative etymology derives Middle English peyvesshe (“capricious, silly”), as a possible corruption of Latin perversus (“perverted”). The meaning “fretful” develops in the 16th century.

A third suggestion links the word to classical Latin expavidus (“startled, shy”) (< ex- + pavidus) via an unrecorded variant with -ai- of Middle French espave (“stray [of animals]; foreign [of persons]; lost property, flotsam”) (first attested 1283 in Old French; Modern French épave). The semantic connection is thought to be the behaviour of stray animals. Compare -ish suffix.

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /ˈpiːvɪʃ/
  • (US) IPA(key): /ˈpivɪʃ/

Adjective

peevish (comparative more peevish, superlative most peevish)

  1. Characterized by or exhibiting petty bad temper, bad-tempered, moody, cross. [from 1520]
  2. Constantly complaining, whining; childishly fretful.
  3. Easily annoyed, especially by things that are not important; irritable, querulous.
  4. (obsolete, Northern England) Clever, expert. [18th c.]
    • 1710, Thomas Ruddiman in Gawin Douglas, Virgil's Æneis, translated into Scottish verse (new edition), gloss (at cited word):
      The word peevish among the vulgar of Scotland is used for niggardly, covetous; in the North of England, for witty, subtile.
  5. (obsolete, Canada, Northern England) Sharp, piercing, bitter (of the wind); windy, blustery (of the weather).
  6. (chiefly obsolete) Perverse, refractory; headstrong, obstinate; capricious, skittish; (also) coy. [from c. 1400]
    • 1539, Coverdale Bible (Cranmer Preface):
      Not onely foolyshe frowarde and obstinate but also peuysshe, peruerse and indurate.
  7. (obsolete) Silly, senseless, foolish. [16th–17th c.]
  8. (obsolete) Beside oneself; out of one's senses; mad. [16th c.]
  9. (obsolete) Spiteful, malignant, mischievous, harmful. [16th c.]
    • 1601, John Marston et al., Iacke Drums entertainment, ch. II, sig. D2v:
      This crosse, this peeuish hap, / Strikes dead my spirits like a thunderclap.
  10. (obsolete) Hateful, distasteful, horrid. [16th c.]
    • 1563, Thomas Becon, The displaying of the Popish masse (new edition, 1637), p. 299:
      The Lords Supper and your peevish, popish private masse doe agree together..as the common proverbe is, like harpe and harrow, or like the hare and the hound.

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Adverb

peevish (not comparable)

  1. (obsolete) Peevishly.

Source: wiktionary.org