misread

verb

mis·​read ˌmis-ˈrēd 

misread ˌmis-ˈred  ; misreading ˌmis-ˈrē-diŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to read incorrectly

2

: to misinterpret in or as if in reading

… totally misread the lesson of history …

—Christopher Hollis

Synonyms of misread

• misunderstand

Examples of misread in a Sentence

I guess I misread the instructions.

They have misread the lessons of the past.

Politicians may have misread the mood of the public.

I badly misread the situation.

Recent Examples on the Web

But Smith thinks that the export control used against Anthropic has been misread as an effort to cut off foreign users specifically, when the government’s intent was to deprive everyone of access. — Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 9 July 2026

Leaders who treat the experience economy as a cycle — something to lean into this quarter and reassess next year — are, in his view, misreading the underlying forces driving the change. — Nia Bowers, USA Today, 8 July 2026

The Pacific Neuroscience Institute warns that small day-to-day fluctuations in readiness scores, heart rate or stress metrics can be misread as signs of a health problem. — Samantha Agate, Kansas City Star, 7 July 2026

Schumer badly misread the Democratic electorate and tried to clear the field for his preferred candidate, Maine’s 78-year-old governor, Janet Mills, leaving a vacuum that Platner filled. — Michelle Goldberg, Mercury News, 7 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1658, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for misread

• accede
• agreed
• airspeed
• alkyd
• bindweed
• chickweed
• concede
• decreed
• duckweed
• exceed
• flaxseed
• impede

Kids Definition

misread

verb

mis·​read (ˈ)mis-ˈrēd 

misread -ˈred  ; misreading -ˈrēd-iŋ 

1

: to read incorrectly

2

: to misinterpret in or as if in reading