honest mistake
noun
: something that anyone could be wrong about
Don't worry about it. It was an honest mistake.
Examples of honest mistake in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Many people laughed about the honest mistake and shared their similar stories, but others criticized the comment as harmful.
—
Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 May 2025
Sending random cartoon images with ridiculous captions is perhaps an honest mistake.
—Chris Westfall, Forbes, 22 Jan. 2025
Pearson’s rationale, with an eye on possibly avoiding legal issues down the road, was that student athletes shouldn’t be penalized for an honest mistake.
—Danny Ventura, Boston Herald, 19 Dec. 2024
Now go out there and get a waitress fired for an honest mistake.
—Evan Waite, The New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2024
Prosecutors said the testimony helps prove Hankison's actions during the raid of Taylor's apartment were willful, rather than an honest mistake, as his defense has argued.
—Killian Baarlaer, The Courier-Journal, 14 Oct. 2024
For the vast number of journalists, even making an honest mistake is extremely embarrassing.
—Larry Magid, The Mercury News, 10 Oct. 2024
While the princess’ apology and claim of an honest mistake should go some way to halting further social media conversation, others will find the altered image and subsequent explanation hard to accept.
—Lauren Said-Moorhouse, CNN, 11 Mar. 2024
When companies make an honest mistake, customers are usually willing to forgive.
—Laurent Belsie, The Christian Science Monitor, 6 Feb. 2024
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Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 May 2025
Sending random cartoon images with ridiculous captions is perhaps an honest mistake.
—Chris Westfall, Forbes, 22 Jan. 2025
Pearson’s rationale, with an eye on possibly avoiding legal issues down the road, was that student athletes shouldn’t be penalized for an honest mistake.
—Danny Ventura, Boston Herald, 19 Dec. 2024
Now go out there and get a waitress fired for an honest mistake.
—Evan Waite, The New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2024
Prosecutors said the testimony helps prove Hankison's actions during the raid of Taylor's apartment were willful, rather than an honest mistake, as his defense has argued.
—Killian Baarlaer, The Courier-Journal, 14 Oct. 2024
For the vast number of journalists, even making an honest mistake is extremely embarrassing.
—Larry Magid, The Mercury News, 10 Oct. 2024
While the princess’ apology and claim of an honest mistake should go some way to halting further social media conversation, others will find the altered image and subsequent explanation hard to accept.
—Lauren Said-Moorhouse, CNN, 11 Mar. 2024
When companies make an honest mistake, customers are usually willing to forgive.
—Laurent Belsie, The Christian Science Monitor, 6 Feb. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Honest mistake.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/honest%20mistake. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.
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