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

Many reviewers misread the family-life contrast of gang rival Louis (Mathieu Perotto) and his dying father, missing the poignant irony of isolates at odds with each other. —Armond White, National Review, 15 Jan. 2025

But that assessment misread the Netanyahu-Trump dynamic. —Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 15 Jan. 2025

Anthropomorphism can sometimes misread what animals are actually going through, Barash warns. —Chad De Guzman, TIME, 27 Dec. 2024

The audience always seems to want more, more, more and too often studios misread that as better, better, better. —Pete Hammond, Deadline, 18 Dec. 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