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 of misread

• 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

Without that detail, teams may misread brittle demos as readiness or blame the model for problems caused by weak infrastructure. — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026

However, Soto misread the ball bouncing off the turf completely, choosing to have an aggressive route toward the ball and potentially catch it on the short hop. — Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 30 June 2026

Mercury stations retrograde in Cancer in your 3rd House of Communication, making texts, directions, calls, errands, and local plans easier to misread. — Tarot.com, Sun Sentinel, 29 June 2026

The collaborators realized the song was moving beyond Germany only after misreading a flood of notifications. — Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 25 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1658, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for misread

• accede
• agreed
• airspeed
• alkyd
• bindweed
• chickweed
• concede
• decreed
• duckweed
• exceed
• flaxseed
• impede

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