0%

misconstrue

mis·con·strue
M m

Transcription

    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • UK Pronunciation
    • UK IPA
    • [mis-kuh n-stroo or, esp. British, mis-kon-stroo]
    • /ˌmɪs kənˈstru or, esp. British, mɪsˈkɒn stru/
    • /ˌmɪs.kənˈstruː/
    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • [mis-kuh n-stroo or, esp. British, mis-kon-stroo]
    • /ˌmɪs kənˈstru or, esp. British, mɪsˈkɒn stru/

Definitions of misconstrue word

  • verb with object misconstrue to misunderstand the meaning of; take in a wrong sense; misinterpret. 1
  • noun misconstrue Interpret (something, especially a person's words or actions) wrongly. 1
  • transitive verb misconstrue interpret incorrectly 1
  • verb misconstrue If you misconstrue something that has been said or something that happens, you interpret it wrongly. 0
  • verb misconstrue to interpret mistakenly 0
  • verb transitive misconstrue to construe wrongly; misinterpret; misunderstand 0

Information block about the term

Origin of misconstrue

First appearance:

before 1350
One of the 20% oldest English words
Middle English word dating back to 1350-1400; See origin at mis-1, construe

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Misconstrue

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation

misconstrue popularity

A pretty common term. Usually people know it’s meaning, but prefer to use a more spread out synonym. About 44% of English native speakers know the meaning and use word.
This word is included in each student's vocabulary. Most likely there is at least one movie with this word in the title.

misconstrue usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for misconstrue

verb misconstrue

  • misread — Read (a piece of text) wrongly.
  • pervert — to affect with perversion.
  • misinterpret — Interpret (something or someone) wrongly.
  • distort — to twist awry or out of shape; make crooked or deformed: Arthritis had distorted his fingers.
  • misunderstand — to take (words, statements, etc.) in a wrong sense; understand wrongly.

Antonyms for misconstrue

verb misconstrue

  • discern — to perceive by the sight or some other sense or by the intellect; see, recognize, or apprehend: They discerned a sail on the horizon.
  • understand — to perceive the meaning of; grasp the idea of; comprehend: to understand Spanish; I didn't understand your question.
  • comprehend — If you cannot comprehend something, you cannot understand it.
  • get — to receive or come to have possession, use, or enjoyment of: to get a birthday present; to get a pension.
  • perceive — to become aware of, know, or identify by means of the senses: I perceived an object looming through the mist.

Top questions with misconstrue

  • what does misconstrue mean?

See also

Matching words

Was this page helpful?
Yes No
Thank you for your feedback! Tell your friends about this page
Tell us why?