misguided

adjective

mis·​guid·​ed (ˌ)mis-ˈgī-dəd How to pronounce misguided (audio)
Synonyms of misguidednext
: led or prompted by wrong or inappropriate motives or ideals
well-meaning but misguided do-gooders
misguidedly adverb
misguidedness noun

Examples of misguided in a Sentence

She's been getting a lot of bad advice from misguided friends. He blames the crisis on the government's misguided economic policies. a misguided attempt to help
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
But the film is also a surprisingly thoughtful examination of faith and the ease with which genuine, if maybe misguided, belief can be manipulated and used as a self-serving tool. Bill Goodykoontz, AZCentral.com, 9 Dec. 2025 The Celtics’ bench players all shot the ball well in the first half — Hauser, Anfernee Simons, Josh Minott and Baylor Scheierman attempted exclusively 3-pointers and went 7-for-11 — and even after some misguided fouls late in the second quarter, Boston entered halftime up 69-46. Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 5 Dec. 2025 OpenAI has been sued several times over the past month, each case claiming that the company’s flagship product is faulty and dangerous—that it is designed to hold long conversations and reinforce users’ beliefs, no matter how misguided. Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 4 Dec. 2025 Russia should face the consequences of its misguided policies, not reap the rewards of territorial enlargement. Sergey Radchenko, Foreign Affairs, 4 Dec. 2025 See All Example Sentences for misguided

Word History

First Known Use

1500, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of misguided was in 1500

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Cite this Entry

“Misguided.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/misguided. Accessed 12 Dec. 2025.

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