Vixenish
/ˈvɪk.sən.ɪʃ/noun
Resembling or characteristic of a vixen; sly, spirited, or flirtatiously sharp.
Did you know?The word comes from vixen, the female fox, and its older English ancestry is tied to a root for fox-shape and fox-ness, not to any demon or spell — but the fox itself has long been a symbol of trickery in folklore.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*puk- / *puḱ-
“A reconstructed root associated with fox-like animals in early Indo-European branches.”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*fuhsaz
“Fox.”
Old English
OE
fox
“Fox.”
Old English
OE
fyxen
“A female fox.”
Middle English
ME
vixen
“A female fox; later also a shrewish or sexually assertive woman.”
Modern English
English
vixenish
“Having the qualities of a vixen; foxlike or sly.”