misidentify
verb
mis·iden·ti·fy
ˌmis-ī-ˈden-tə-ˌfī 
-ə-ˈden-
misidentified; misidentifying
: to identify (someone or something) incorrectly
… a coroner apparently misidentified the bullet he removed from the victim, stating that its caliber differed from that of the bullet entered as evidence against the known shooter.—
David Fisher
David FisherWhile examining the American Museum's collection, I came across a mongoose specimen that was clearly misidentified.—W. Chris Wozencraft
W. Chris WozencraftExamples of misidentify in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
False positives are also common, Marlow said, as these types of systems have been known to misidentify broomsticks as rifles, and rulers for knives.
—Amanda Musa, CNN, 1 Feb. 2025
But the databases sometimes included outdated data, according to six officers, increasing the likelihood that officers would misidentify a civilian as a combatant.
—Patrick Kingsley, New York Times, 26 Dec. 2024
While the gun was not visible to surveillance cameras, Fraser stressed, the system did not misidentify the weapon in this case.
—Amanda Musa, CNN, 1 Feb. 2025
Detection software can misidentify writing as AI-generated and are biased against non-native English speakers, and education experts warn against using the detectors in a disciplinary context.
—Rachel Hale, USA TODAY, 24 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for misidentify
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Amanda Musa, CNN, 1 Feb. 2025
But the databases sometimes included outdated data, according to six officers, increasing the likelihood that officers would misidentify a civilian as a combatant.
—Patrick Kingsley, New York Times, 26 Dec. 2024
While the gun was not visible to surveillance cameras, Fraser stressed, the system did not misidentify the weapon in this case.
—Amanda Musa, CNN, 1 Feb. 2025
Detection software can misidentify writing as AI-generated and are biased against non-native English speakers, and education experts warn against using the detectors in a disciplinary context.
—Rachel Hale, USA TODAY, 24 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for misidentify
Cite this Entry
“Misidentify.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/misidentify. Accessed 5 Mar. 2025.
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