misinform

verb

mis·​in·​form ˌmis-in-ˈfȯrm 

misinformed; misinforming; misinforms

transitive verb

: to give incorrect or misleading information to (someone) : to inform (someone) wrongly

That small, self-serving cabal managed to misinform generations of Americans with malicious myths that misshaped history.

—Dana D. Kelley

"Pardon me," interrupted Alfred Inglethorp, "you have been misinformed. I had no quarrel with my dear wife. … "

—Agatha Christie

see also misinformed

Synonyms

• bamboozle
• beguile
• bluff
• buffalo
• burn
• catch
• con
• cozen
• deceive
• delude
• dupe
• fake out
• fool
• gaff
• gammon
• gull
• have
• have on [chiefly British]
• hoax
• hoodwink
• hornswoggle
• humbug
• juggle
• misguide
• mislead
• snooker
• snow
• spoof
• string along
• suck in
• sucker
• take in
• trick

Examples of misinform in a Sentence

had been misinformed about the purpose of the meeting and walked in on what was a surprise birthday party

Recent Examples on the Web

Paul’s initial post prompted numerous comments calling him out for misinforming his followers about Khelif’s gender. —Diego Ramos Bechara, Variety, 3 Aug. 2024

Loading your audio article University of California at Santa Cruz is among a half-dozen California colleges that a new state audit found inaccurately reported violent crime on campus, leaving students misinformed about their safety. —Molly Gibbs, The Mercury News, 1 Aug. 2024

Many social media platforms, including X, have policies against sharing synthetic and manipulated media in an attempt to misinform audiences. —Kat Tenbarge, NBC News, 1 Aug. 2024

Many including Lizzo are now speaking up for Harris as critics conjure up misinformed backlash about the Democratic front-runner. —Mya Abraham, VIBE.com, 22 July 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

misinform

verb

mis·​in·​form

ˌmis-ən-ˈfȯ(ə)rm

: to give false or misleading information to

misinformation

ˌmis-ˌin-fər-ˈmā-shən

noun