miscue

1 of 2

noun

mis·​cue ˌmis-ˈkyü 

ˈmis-ˌkyü

1

: a faulty stroke in billiards in which the cue slips

2

: mistake, slip

miscue

2 of 2

verb

miscued; miscuing; miscues

intransitive verb

: to make a miscue

Synonyms

Noun

• mistake
• blunder
• error

Examples of miscue in a Sentence

Noun

the slightest miscue could make the trapeze artist lose his grip and fall to the mat below

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

These miscues and unknowns need to get ironed out and resolved for the arrow to clearly be pointing up going into their Week 1 visit to Washington. —Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 4 Aug. 2025

Health policy experts say more frequent eligibility checks and red tape will add administrative costs and cut off people who qualify but fall through the cracks because of administrative miscues. —Diana Leyva, Nashville Tennessean, 30 July 2025

Verb

Wharton might make a wrong decision, miscue a tricky ball, or be overambitious with his distribution on occasion. —Thom Harris, New York Times, 15 May 2025

The Heat’s attempts to unlock Herro contributed to their six first-quarter turnovers, miscues Cleveland turned into 11 points. —Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 28 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1838, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1889, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for miscue

• blew
• blue
• boo
• brew
• chew
• chou
• clue
• coo
• coup
• crew
• cue
• dew

Kids Definition

miscue

1 of 2 noun

mis·​cue (ˈ)mis-ˈkyü 

1

: a faulty stroke in billiards in which the cue slips

2

: mistake entry 2 sense 2, slip

miscue

2 of 2 verb

1

: to make a miscue

2

a

: to miss a stage cue

b

: to answer a wrong cue