misbehave

verb

mis·​be·​have ˌmis-bi-ˈhāv 

-bē-

misbehaved; misbehaving

1

a

transitive : to conduct (oneself) badly or improperly

students who frequently misbehave themselves in class

b

intransitive : to behave with poor manners or a lack of courtesy

He worried about the decline of family discipline, about the fact that local youth went out walking after dark, wasted time in levity, misbehaved in church.

—Tracy Kidder

c

intransitive : to behave with disregard for accepted moral standards especially in sexual matters

known for misbehaving with numerous women

d

intransitive of a member of the armed forces : to behave before or in the presence of the enemy in a way that does not conform to military standards or practice

… has been charged with desertion and misbehaving before the enemy …

—Dan Lamothe

2

intransitive : to behave in an unexpected or unwelcome way

After five floods in four years, people in Liberty County are used to seeing the Trinity River misbehave.

—Adam Nossiter

misbehaver noun

plural misbehavers

misbehavers in the classroom

Synonyms

• act out
• act up
• carry on

Examples of misbehave in a Sentence

scolded the children for misbehaving and sent them to bed early

Recent Examples on the Web

The next step will be devising ways to prevent such a system from generating agents that misbehave. —Will Knight, WIRED, 21 Aug. 2024

This is not the first time that the Olympics have been rocked by equine violence—in 2021 a coach of Germany’s Modern Pentathlon team was booted from the Tokyo games after punching a misbehaving horse named Saint Boy during competition. —Frederick Dreier, Outside Online, 26 July 2024

Now, the extra in that pseudo-salacious video reveal, Rayna Menz, has come forward with a complete denial that Coppola misbehaved at all during those scenes. —Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 30 July 2024

When your child misbehaves, teach them what to do instead instead of just giving a consequence. —Amy Morin, Parents, 24 July 2024

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

misbehave

verb

mis·​be·​have

ˌmis-bi-ˈhāv

: to behave in a wrong or improper manner

misbehavior

-ˈhā-vyər

noun