pixie
Americannoun
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a fairy or sprite, especially a mischievous one.
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a small, pert, or mischievous person.
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of pixie
First recorded in 1620–30; originally dialect (southwestern England) pixy, pigsy, pisky; origin uncertain
Explanation
A pixie is a mythical creature that resembles a mischievous fairy. If you spy some adorable little sprites in green pointed hats sneaking around the woods, you can bet that they're pixies. Pixies appear in folk and fairy tales from the southwest part of England, making minor mischief and dancing in groups. Today a pixie is more or less the same as a fairy or sprite, but older folktales describe conflicts (and even wars) between these groups. The root of the word pixie is a mystery — it may be related to the Swedish dialect pyske, "small fairy," but it's probably rooted in an unknown Celtic word.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Cardi B sported a range of different hairstyles for her court appearances this week, including a black pixie cut one day and long blonde locks the next.
From BBC • Aug. 29, 2025
For Knox, freedom has meant accepting a mantle that her young, manic pixie self could never have envisioned.
From Salon • Apr. 14, 2025
And somehow — despite all the worrying, and yes, my mom worried a lot — there was an idea that things would work out in the end, no pixie dust needed.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 21, 2025
Does your manic pixie dream girl complex fantasize about an ethereal-looking stranger mesmerized in reverie as they gaze upon the dapples of fluorescent Tom Bradley terminal lights reflecting off this sumptuously swamp-hued fabric?
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 19, 2024
A pixie landed on my nose, tickling it.
From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
