misstrike

1 of 2

noun

mis·​strike ˈmis-ˌstrīk 

variants or mis-strike

plural misstrikes or mis-strikes

1

: a coin whose design is imperfect (as by being incomplete or off-center) because the coin was inaccurately struck when it was created

Things to take into consideration include rarity …, distinct symbols and even errors made on the coin, like a misstrike, where the design is stamped off-center.

—Josh Levine

2

: an instance of striking something wrongly or inaccurately

When first-graders play glockenspiels, she removes the flat notes, so even a mis-strike doesn't sound bad.

—Tracey Wong Briggs

Now, that's not so bad on a typewriter, but on a word processor, a misstrike brings up things you don't want, while on a computer, it brings even more "stuff"—stuff you never heard of …

—Mike Morton

misstrike

2 of 2

verb

mis·​strike ˌmis-ˈstrīk 

variants or mis-strike

misstruck ˌmis-ˈstrək  or mis-struck; misstriking or mis-striking

transitive verb

: to strike (something) wrongly or inaccurately

misstrike a key

… one photo shows the long, heavy roof bolts … protruding from the roof, bent at 90-degree angles like cheap nails misstruck with a hammer.

—Robert Gherke

Jobe's tee shot landed in a bunker to the left of the green, and he mis-struck a sand shot that traveled only a few feet.

—Gene Wang

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1869, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Verb

1901, in the meaning defined above