schoolboyish

7.2

Being playful and a little naughty like a young child

adjective
/ˈskuːlˌbɔɪɪʃ/

: infantil

The schoolboyish charm of his jokes made him popular among his friends.

Examples

She rolled her eyes at his schoolboyish behavior, which included playful teasing.
They kept up their banter, which, if overheard, would have sounded forced and schoolboyish, but it was melded and somewhat liquefied by the flow of their exchanged smiles, glances, and nods.

Fiction book (2000)
His schoolboyish antics caused everyone to laugh during the meeting.

Synonyms

boyish

vsschoolboyish

27 3.0

Like a young boy in look or behavior, showing innocence and being playful

is more about immature mischief typical of young students

adolescent

vsschoolboyish

24 4.4

Showing immature or childish behavior

is about younger, more playful mischief not teenage immaturity

prankish

vsschoolboyish

Informal

1 7.5

Being playful and playing small tricks to surprise people

is more general immature mischief rather than specific trick-playing

pranky

vsschoolboyish

Informal

1 7.7

Shows playful energy and plays small tricks to surprise people

is less about lively prankiness and more about immature student behaviour

boylike

vsschoolboyish

4.8

Having the playful, lively, and innocent ways of a boy

is more about deliberate naughty behaviour from a young student

kiddish

vsschoolboyish

Archaic

7.5

Acting like a child in a simple, not serious way

is more tied to youthful male mischief rather than general childlike immaturity

Antonyms

serious

452 1.4

Calm and focused, not playful or joking

mature

199 3.3

Behaving like an adult and thinking sensibly

How Childish

childish

141 2.8

schoolboyish

7.2

boyish

27 3.0

childlike

36 3.7

Surface Forms

schoolboyish positive

Morphology

schoolboyish = schoolboy (transparent) = school + boy + ish

The adjective is formed by adding the regular suffix '-ish' to the familiar noun 'schoolboy' to mean 'like or characteristic of a schoolboy', which is directly inferable.

Etymology

Schoolboyish comes from the simple parts school, boy and the ending -ish, which means 'like'. So, schoolboyish literally means 'like a schoolboy' and is used for someone who is young, playful or a bit immature.