1
a
: an injurious, unfair, or unjust act : action or conduct inflicting harm without due provocation or just cause
b
: a violation or invasion of the legal rights of another
especially
: tort
2
: something wrong, immoral, or unethical
especially
: principles, practices, or conduct contrary to justice, goodness, equity, or law
3
: the state, position, or fact of being or doing wrong: such as
a
: the state of being mistaken or incorrect
b
: the state of being guilty
2
: not right or proper according to a code, standard, or convention : improper
it was wrong not to thank your host
3
: not according to truth or facts : incorrect
gave a wrong date
4
: not satisfactory (as in condition, results, health, or temper)
5
: not in accordance with one's needs, intent, or expectations
took the wrong bus
6
: of, relating to, or constituting the side of something that is usually held to be opposite to the principal one, that is the one naturally or by design turned down, inward, or away, or that is the least finished or polished
wrongness
noun
1
: without accuracy : incorrectly
guessed wrong
2
: without regard for what is proper or just
was reprimanded for what he had done wrong
3
: in a wrong direction
turned wrong at the junction
4
a
: in an unsuccessful or unfortunate way
something went wrong
b
: out of working order or condition
5
: in a false light
don't get me wrong
Synonyms
Noun
Adjective
- bad
- bastard
- bush
- bush-league
- crummy
- crumby
- deficient
- dissatisfactory
- ill
- inferior
- lame
- lousy
- off
- paltry
- poor
- punk
- sour
- suboptimal
- subpar
- substandard
- unacceptable
- unsatisfactory
- wack [slang]
- wanting
- wretched
Adverb
Example Sentences
Noun
any reasonable person should be expected to know the difference between right and wrong
trying to right all the wrongs in the world
Adjective
I don't want you to get the wrong impression of him.
Don't take this the wrong way, but I think you should start exercising.
Are my actions sending the wrong message?
These pages are in the wrong order.
I got four answers wrong on the test.
You're wrong; the answer is six.
You like baseball, or am I wrong?
Am I wrong in thinking that she should never have gone?
I think her birthday is May 11th, but I could be wrong.
He thinks I can't win, but I'm going to prove him wrong.
Adverb
I entered the numbers wrong.
Her name was spelled wrong on the form.
I can't get this to work; could you show me what I did wrong?
Verb
We should forgive those who have wronged us.
As the wronged party, you have the right to sue for damages.
See More
Recent Examples on the Web
Theresa Vargas, Washington Post, 2 Aug. 2023
Nevertheless, Fallin called it a positive step for progress that the current zoo leadership is taking steps to right a wrong committed decades earlier by showing respect for the people interred on the property.
—al, 2 Aug. 2023
Pete Davidson is taking the steps to right his wrongs four months after his car crash in Beverly Hills.
—Kelly Martinez, Peoplemag, 24 July 2023
In addition to covering the ongoing fight to reclaim control of the Black Hills, the docu investigates the many ways that the U.S. has ignored, overlooked and failed to grapple with the historical wrongs done to Indigenous communities across the country.
—Addie Morfoot, Variety, 14 July 2023
Related:Will Mavericks’ additions of Grant Williams, others right the wrongs of past offseasons?
—Sportsday Staff, Dallas News, 23 July 2023
On Saturday, Gallaudet University held a poignant ceremony aimed at righting that wrong.
—Theresa Vargas, Washington Post, 22 July 2023
Iger, who was CEO for 15 years before retiring in February 2020, initially returned to undo the wrongs of his successor Bob Chapek with a limited contract and a mandate to find a new leader to take over the business.
—Ananya Bhattacharya, Quartz, 13 July 2023
Sagittarius November 22-December 21 Proving the opposition wrong takes hard work behind the scenes.
—Tarot Astrologers, Chicago Tribune, 10 July 2023
Quincy Bulin, Better Homes & Gardens, 11 Aug. 2023
The Blossom alum's not wrong in finding things to be grateful for.
—Adrianna Freedman, Good Housekeeping, 11 Aug. 2023
No new inventor wants the details of their idea to fall into the wrong hands, so many want to know what security and confidentiality is like at InventHelp.
—Jon Stojan, Journal Sentinel, 11 Aug. 2023
In a twisty adventure that sprawls from Lisbon to Iceland to the skies over Senegal, Rachel gets in all manner of scuffles trying to keep this tech from getting into the wrong hands.
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 11 Aug. 2023
Wearing the wrong size or type of shoe can cause your joints to become more inflamed, further limiting mobility.
—Lindsay Modglin, Verywell Health, 11 Aug. 2023
This was one of two marquee takeaways from the midterm elections—the other was that the pundits were wrong, but that’s true in every election.
—Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 10 Aug. 2023
There are several ways to freeze raw eggs correctly, but there's one that is always going to be wrong: freezing them in their shells.
—Maggie Burch, Southern Living, 10 Aug. 2023
More than four hours in, Carr knew something was wrong.
—Annie Waldman, ProPublica, 9 Aug. 2023
Sarah Weinman, New York Times, 11 Aug. 2023
Could the state could prove Steinbeck wrong this time?
—Ryan Fonseca, Los Angeles Times, 12 Apr. 2023
The gas in the kitchen wasn’t connected, a live wire in the walls made for a major fire hazard, and cabinet shelving was installed wrong.
—Kelly Allen, House Beautiful, 4 July 2023
This increases your odds of putting things together wrong and ending up with an unsafe unit, or losing necessary parts and pieces along the way.
—Sarah Bradley, Parents, 30 June 2023
However, there are some brands that are hard to go wrong with -- Kendra Scott being one of those.
—Josie Howell | Jhowell@al.com, al, 16 Apr. 2023
However, things go very wrong on a romantic getaway.
—Hannah Kerns, Peoplemag, 21 Feb. 2023
What started as TikTok users analyzing posts from the two women in search of potential shade or wrong-doing has quickly spiraled into as nasty cesspool of hate and manufactured competition.
—Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 24 Mar. 2023
While that all sounds good and well, something is going wrong in the prepaid college tuition industry — at least in the state of Maryland.
—Robert Farrington, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2023
Abigail Van Buren, oregonlive, 6 Aug. 2023
The state had wronged Black voters, and Alabama will have to redraw its congressional districts.
—Kyle Whitmire | Kwhitmire@al.com, al, 9 June 2023
Steele and Lindy share the belief that Auburn’s first-year head coach Hugh Freeze will start righting the ship that was wronged by former head coach Bryan Harsin in less than two seasons.
—Ainslie Lee | Alee@al.com, al, 8 July 2023
But John had wanted to be wronged back, to be asked to explain himself in a long monologue.
—Camille Bordas, The New Yorker, 3 July 2023
Jack Mizrahi: After Paris Is Burning, people felt wronged by it.
—José Criales-Unzueta, Vogue, 28 June 2023
The theme is liberation — for those wronged and for those to blame.
—Scott Wilson, Washington Post, 24 June 2023
The person who wronged you lives rent-free in your brain.
—Stephanie Dolgoff, Good Housekeeping, 19 June 2023
For many, reparations dictated by governments, without justice for those wronged and their heirs, are of limited value.
—Riley Robinson, The Christian Science Monitor, 16 June 2023
See More
Noun
But recognizing and addressing past wrongs is a start to creating a medical system that treats all bodies with the same respect and consideration, no matter a person’s race, ethnicity or financial situation.
—Theresa Vargas, Washington Post, 2 Aug. 2023
Nevertheless, Fallin called it a positive step for progress that the current zoo leadership is taking steps to right a wrong committed decades earlier by showing respect for the people interred on the property.
—al, 2 Aug. 2023
Pete Davidson is taking the steps to right his wrongs four months after his car crash in Beverly Hills.
—Kelly Martinez, Peoplemag, 24 July 2023
In addition to covering the ongoing fight to reclaim control of the Black Hills, the docu investigates the many ways that the U.S. has ignored, overlooked and failed to grapple with the historical wrongs done to Indigenous communities across the country.
—Addie Morfoot, Variety, 14 July 2023
Related:Will Mavericks’ additions of Grant Williams, others right the wrongs of past offseasons?
—Sportsday Staff, Dallas News, 23 July 2023
On Saturday, Gallaudet University held a poignant ceremony aimed at righting that wrong.
—Theresa Vargas, Washington Post, 22 July 2023
Iger, who was CEO for 15 years before retiring in February 2020, initially returned to undo the wrongs of his successor Bob Chapek with a limited contract and a mandate to find a new leader to take over the business.
—Ananya Bhattacharya, Quartz, 13 July 2023
Sagittarius November 22-December 21 Proving the opposition wrong takes hard work behind the scenes.
—Tarot Astrologers, Chicago Tribune, 10 July 2023
Adjective
If something is wrong, in addition to the pulsing red light, the Nest Protect speaks up in a friendly, human voice warning you and telling you where the problem is.
—Quincy Bulin, Better Homes & Gardens, 11 Aug. 2023
The Blossom alum's not wrong in finding things to be grateful for.
—Adrianna Freedman, Good Housekeeping, 11 Aug. 2023
No new inventor wants the details of their idea to fall into the wrong hands, so many want to know what security and confidentiality is like at InventHelp.
—Jon Stojan, Journal Sentinel, 11 Aug. 2023
In a twisty adventure that sprawls from Lisbon to Iceland to the skies over Senegal, Rachel gets in all manner of scuffles trying to keep this tech from getting into the wrong hands.
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 11 Aug. 2023
Wearing the wrong size or type of shoe can cause your joints to become more inflamed, further limiting mobility.
—Lindsay Modglin, Verywell Health, 11 Aug. 2023
This was one of two marquee takeaways from the midterm elections—the other was that the pundits were wrong, but that’s true in every election.
—Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 10 Aug. 2023
There are several ways to freeze raw eggs correctly, but there's one that is always going to be wrong: freezing them in their shells.
—Maggie Burch, Southern Living, 10 Aug. 2023
More than four hours in, Carr knew something was wrong.
—Annie Waldman, ProPublica, 9 Aug. 2023
Adverb
That bright idea, naturally, is going to go wrong in all manner of spectacular ways.
—Sarah Weinman, New York Times, 11 Aug. 2023
Could the state could prove Steinbeck wrong this time?
—Ryan Fonseca, Los Angeles Times, 12 Apr. 2023
The gas in the kitchen wasn’t connected, a live wire in the walls made for a major fire hazard, and cabinet shelving was installed wrong.
—Kelly Allen, House Beautiful, 4 July 2023
This increases your odds of putting things together wrong and ending up with an unsafe unit, or losing necessary parts and pieces along the way.
—Sarah Bradley, Parents, 30 June 2023
However, there are some brands that are hard to go wrong with -- Kendra Scott being one of those.
—Josie Howell | Jhowell@al.com, al, 16 Apr. 2023
However, things go very wrong on a romantic getaway.
—Hannah Kerns, Peoplemag, 21 Feb. 2023
What started as TikTok users analyzing posts from the two women in search of potential shade or wrong-doing has quickly spiraled into as nasty cesspool of hate and manufactured competition.
—Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 24 Mar. 2023
While that all sounds good and well, something is going wrong in the prepaid college tuition industry — at least in the state of Maryland.
—Robert Farrington, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2023
Verb
Part of addiction recovery is the requirement to make amends to those the addict has wronged or hurt.
—Abigail Van Buren, oregonlive, 6 Aug. 2023
The state had wronged Black voters, and Alabama will have to redraw its congressional districts.
—Kyle Whitmire | Kwhitmire@al.com, al, 9 June 2023
Steele and Lindy share the belief that Auburn’s first-year head coach Hugh Freeze will start righting the ship that was wronged by former head coach Bryan Harsin in less than two seasons.
—Ainslie Lee | Alee@al.com, al, 8 July 2023
But John had wanted to be wronged back, to be asked to explain himself in a long monologue.
—Camille Bordas, The New Yorker, 3 July 2023
Jack Mizrahi: After Paris Is Burning, people felt wronged by it.
—José Criales-Unzueta, Vogue, 28 June 2023
The theme is liberation — for those wronged and for those to blame.
—Scott Wilson, Washington Post, 24 June 2023
The person who wronged you lives rent-free in your brain.
—Stephanie Dolgoff, Good Housekeeping, 19 June 2023
For many, reparations dictated by governments, without justice for those wronged and their heirs, are of limited value.
—Riley Robinson, The Christian Science Monitor, 16 June 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wrong.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English, from Old English wrang, from *wrang, adjective, wrong
Adjective
Middle English, from Old English *wrang, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse rangr awry, wrong, Danish vrang wrong side; akin to Old English wringan to wring
First Known Use
Noun
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Adjective
13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Adverb
13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Verb
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Time Traveler
The first known use of wrong was
before the 12th century
Phrases Containing wrong
Dictionary Entries Near wrong
Cite this Entry
“Wrong.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wrong. Accessed 20 Aug. 2023.
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Kids Definition
wrong
1 of 3 noun1
: a harmful, unfair, or unjust act
2
: something that is wrong : wrong principles, practices, or conduct
know right from wrong
3
: the state, position, or fact of being or doing wrong
in the wrong
wrong
2 of 3 adjective2
: not agreeing with proper behavior
it was wrong not to thank the hostess
3
: not suitable
wore the wrong clothes for a wedding
4
: not according to truth or facts : incorrect
a wrong answer on the test
5
: not satisfactory
there's something wrong about the story's ending
6
: not in agreement with one's needs, intentions, or expectations
took the wrong bus
7
: made so as to be placed down or under and not to be seen
the wrong side of a fabric
wrong
adverb
wrongly
adverb
wrongness
noun
Legal Definition
wrong
1 of 2 noun1
: a violation of the rights of another
especially
: tort
2
: something (as conduct, practices, or qualities) contrary to justice, goodness, equity, or law
the difference between right and wrong
wrong
2 of 2 transitive verb
: to do a wrong to : treat with injustice
More from Merriam-Webster on wrong
Nglish: Translation of wrong for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of wrong for Arabic Speakers
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