misconduct

noun

mis·​con·​duct ˌmis-ˈkän-(ˌ)dəkt 

1

: mismanagement especially of governmental or military responsibilities

2

: intentional wrongdoing

specifically : deliberate violation of a law or standard especially by a government official : malfeasance

3

a

: improper behavior

b

: adultery

4

: a penalty (as in ice hockey) for improper behavior or abusive language (as toward an official)

misconduct

ˌmis-kən-ˈdəkt 

transitive verb

Synonyms

• wrongdoing

Examples of misconduct in a Sentence

He was forced to defend himself against charges of sexual misconduct.

There have been reports of misconduct by several employees.

Recent Examples on the Web

McCabe just got the five minutes for fighting, while Tuch got an extra two minutes for instigating the fight and a 10-minute misconduct. —Matthew Fairburn, New York Times, 26 Oct. 2025

The commission investigates allegations of judicial misconduct in Florida, and the state Supreme Court will ultimately decide whether Miller will be sanctioned. —Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 25 Oct. 2025

New York State Attorney General Letitia James announced on Wednesday the creation of an online reporting tool for instances of alleged misconduct by federal immigration agents operating in the state. —Billal Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Oct. 2025

Chairman Atkins noted that the processes should ensure that the SEC seeks to impose penalties and other relief that are appropriately tailored to the misconduct at issue, within statutory limitations, and without adding further to shareholder injury. —Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 24 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1705, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

misconduct

noun

mis·​con·​duct (ˈ)mis-ˈkän-(ˌ)dəkt 

1

: bad management

2

: improper or unlawful behavior

misconduct

ˌmis-kən-ˈdəkt 

verb

Legal Definition

misconduct

noun

mis·​con·​duct mis-ˈkän-dəkt 

: intentional or wanton wrongful but usually not criminal behavior: as

a

: deliberate or wanton violation of standards of conduct by a government official

b

: wrongful behavior (as adultery) by a spouse that leads to the dissolution of the marriage

c

: an attorney's violation of the standards set for professional conduct

also : an attorney's and especially a prosecutor's use of deceptive or reprehensible methods in presenting a case to a jury

d

: impermissible behavior by a juror (as communicating about the case with outsiders, witnesses, or others, reading or hearing news reports about the case, or independently introducing evidence to other jurors)

e

: an employee's deliberate or wanton disregard of an employer's interests or disregard or violation of the employer's standards or rules that is sufficient to justify a denial of unemployment compensation