as in incorrectly
in a mistaken or inappropriate way
the manufacturer's warranty is no longer valid if the appliance is used improperly
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Recent Examples of improperly
The actions reflect growing concern inside the administration that weak oversight is allowing enormous sums of public healthcare spending to flow out the door improperly.
—
Sally Pipes, Forbes.com, 1 June 2026
Bishop argued that Fulton County is improperly asking the judge to speculate about whether any future charges might be barred by statutes of limitations before investigators have completed their work.
—Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 1 June 2026
That inspection, and later ones, uncovered numerous non-compliant or improperly labeled marijuana, kratom and mushroom product, according to the DLCP order.
—Logan Smith, CBS News, 31 May 2026
Erewhon accused the landlord, Midwood Investment and Development, of improperly increasing rent.
—Roger Vincent, Los Angeles Times, 30 May 2026
Baking soda also poses a potential risk to plants if applied improperly.
—Cori Sears, The Spruce, 30 May 2026
The inspector found a black substance inside the ice machine and under some equipment, meat that was improperly stored and cooked corn without a date marking.
—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 May 2026
Two containers of pozole containing chicken and corn were improperly cooling in the walk-in cooler.
—Veronica Fernandez-Alvarado
may 29, Sacbee.com, 29 May 2026
Having now lost at trial and on appeal from improperly shutting out Blakeman from the state Public Campaign Finance Board program, the Dems should stand down and get on with gubernatorial campaigning and end the games.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 29 May 2026
Sally Pipes, Forbes.com, 1 June 2026
Bishop argued that Fulton County is improperly asking the judge to speculate about whether any future charges might be barred by statutes of limitations before investigators have completed their work.
—Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 1 June 2026
That inspection, and later ones, uncovered numerous non-compliant or improperly labeled marijuana, kratom and mushroom product, according to the DLCP order.
—Logan Smith, CBS News, 31 May 2026
Erewhon accused the landlord, Midwood Investment and Development, of improperly increasing rent.
—Roger Vincent, Los Angeles Times, 30 May 2026
Baking soda also poses a potential risk to plants if applied improperly.
—Cori Sears, The Spruce, 30 May 2026
The inspector found a black substance inside the ice machine and under some equipment, meat that was improperly stored and cooked corn without a date marking.
—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 May 2026
Two containers of pozole containing chicken and corn were improperly cooling in the walk-in cooler.
—Veronica Fernandez-Alvarado
may 29, Sacbee.com, 29 May 2026
Having now lost at trial and on appeal from improperly shutting out Blakeman from the state Public Campaign Finance Board program, the Dems should stand down and get on with gubernatorial campaigning and end the games.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 29 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for improperly
Adverb
-
Cotten argued that the audit incorrectly claims that the department does not have a grasp of its budget.—
Dylan Lysen
May 28,
Kansas City Star,
28 May 2026
-
Creators who believe their videos have been tagged as AI incorrectly can appeal, but not if the site marks an upload as AI for either of those reasons.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
27 May 2026
Adverb
-
Yet, a recent discussion within the scientific community has mistakenly created a false narrative for the public.—
Marshall Shepherd,
Forbes.com,
26 May 2026
-
He was mistakenly substituted during Santos’ 3-0 defeat to Coritiba after the fourth official on the touchline displayed his number by accident — an error the referee wouldn’t reverse.—
Phil Hay,
New York Times,
19 May 2026
Adverb
-
This prevented the driver from being erroneously cited and the incident could be used to show other drivers how the cameras were protecting them.—
James Morris,
Forbes.com,
31 May 2026
-
The Sentinel discovered the development with Gavi’s license because her name was included erroneously at one point in the Bastien documents.—
Annie Martin,
The Orlando Sentinel,
22 May 2026
Adverb
-
Argueta denies touching the girl inappropriately.—
Adam Thompson,
CBS News,
26 May 2026
-
Zahrt first called the Department of Child and Family Services in 2018 when her then-7-year-old daughter began rubbing lotion on herself inappropriately, and claimed that was how her father instructed her to do so, Zahrt said in the Hulu series.—
Jordana Comiter,
PEOPLE,
22 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Improperly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/improperly. Accessed 3 Jun. 2026.
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