misread

verb

mis·​read ˌmis-ˈrēd 

misread ˌmis-ˈred  ; misreading ˌmis-ˈrē-diŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to read incorrectly

2

: to misinterpret in or as if in reading

totally misread the lesson of history

—Christopher Hollis

Synonyms

• misapprehend
• misconstrue
• misinterpret
• misknow
• misperceive
• miss
• mistake
• misunderstand

Examples of misread in a Sentence

I guess I misread the instructions.

They have misread the lessons of the past.

Politicians may have misread the mood of the public.

I badly misread the situation.

Recent Examples on the Web

Over the past two years, the U.S. consumer has been misread and then misread again. —Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2024

World & Nation In Lebanon, a search for safety and sanity as half a million are displaced Sept. 27, 2024 Despite his reputation for shrewd calculation, critics say Nasrallah — and Hezbollah with him — misread the situation with Israel. —Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 28 Sep. 2024

The Competition The main reason startups fail—cited in 42% of cases assessed—is misreading market demand. —Yusuf Berkan Altun, Forbes, 6 Nov. 2024

This may increase the risk of a patient incorrectly interpreting their results, misreading one infection for another. —Julie Sullivan, The Conversation, 8 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1658, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

misread

verb

mis·​read (ˈ)mis-ˈrēd 

misread -ˈred  ; misreading -ˈrēd-iŋ 

1

: to read incorrectly

2

: to misinterpret in or as if in reading