noun
mischievous spirit; desire to tease
Refers to a playful urge to tease or cause harmless mischief, often in a lighthearted context.
彼のいたずら心が抑えられなかった。
He couldn't suppress his mischievous urge.
いたずら心から、友達の靴を隠した。
Out of a desire to tease, I hid my friend's shoes.
Standard spelling using kana for いたずら and kanji for 心.
Kanji spelling using 悪戯 for いたずら; less common but still encountered.
いたずら is the act of mischief or prank itself, while いたずら心 is the underlying mischievous spirit or urge.
Compound of いたずら (mischief) and 心 (heart, mind). The exact origin of いたずら is uncertain, but it has been used since classical Japanese to mean playful or idle behavior.