misconstrue

verb

mis·​con·​strue ˌmis-kən-ˈstrü 

misconstrued; misconstruing

transitive verb

1

: to interpret (something, such as a statement or action) wrongly : misinterpret

misconstrued her words/meaning/silence

He does not want his real name used in the newspaper because even the most innocent statement could be misconstrued here and lead to trouble, he says.

—Lynne Duke

I instantly turned away, lest he should see and misconstrue my emotion.

—Anne Brontë

2

: to misinterpret the meaning, intention, or character of (someone)

… it is the post-Vietnam revisionists who have most ironically misconstrued [Herman] Melville.

—Frederick Crews

… a sad sack whom no one would misconstrue as charming.

—Karen Karbo

Synonyms of misconstrue

• misunderstand
• misinterpret
• misread

Examples of misconstrue in a Sentence

claimed that the press had misconstrued her comments

Recent Examples on the Web

Clase’s defense team argued the text message was misconstrued, as roosters and chickens in such talks with Pena often refer to cockfighting, which is legal in his native Dominican Republic. — Scott Thompson Outkick, FOXNews.com, 7 Nov. 2026

Immigrant connections When asked by pollsters what their top concerns are, Latino respondents rarely include immigration on that list, but this misconstrues the fact that immigration is a key Latino concern. — Lisa García Bedolla, Time, 4 Nov. 2026

But Villegas accused Valadao of misconstruing his approach on immigration, citing his House votes to increase federal immigration agencies’ budgets without reforms. — Mathew Miranda, Sacbee.com, 7 Oct. 2026

Opposition contacts Rivera and his lawyers relied heavily on his contacts with Maduro opponents to argue that the government had misconstrued his work. — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 2 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for misconstrue

• accrue
• ado
• ainu
• aircrew
• airscrew
• anew
• askew
• baboo
• babu
• bamboo
• beaucoup
• bijou

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Kids Definition

misconstrue

verb

mis·​con·​strue

ˌmis-kən-ˈstrü

: to construe wrongly : misinterpret