misdirected

adjective

as in misguided

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of misdirected The evidence will show that this was a misdirected voicemail resulting from a scam call, not a deliberate communication directed at Sheriff Kamara. — Joe Holden, CBS News, 28 July 2026 Reducing misdirected street lighting for example can really help, especially in areas with species that need low light for navigation. — Mack Baysinger follow, Los Angeles Times, 22 July 2026 Dan Kejsefman, Talent Director at Avature, describes it as misdirected effort fueled by anxiety. — Bryan Robinson, Forbes.com, 21 June 2026 The turban’s high visibility leaves Sikh men uniquely vulnerable to misdirected Islamophobic attacks, according to the American Bar Association. — Susie Neilson, San Francisco Chronicle, 5 Mar. 2026 The novelist Naomi Alderman recently wrote about how the thing that keeps drawing us back to our phones is actually a misdirected desire to learn. — Richard Godwin, Travel + Leisure, 5 Feb. 2026 Everyone in the book suffers from unreturned or misdirected love. — Christopher Tayler, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026 Even with smart investing, without the right systems in place to transfer this wealth, wealth that took generations to build can be lost, misdirected, or fumbled entirely. — Essence, 14 Jan. 2026 Weiss' defenders have blasted the show's staff as insubordinate and misdirected. — Arkansas Online, 26 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for misdirected
  1. misguided
  2. ineffective
  3. careless
  4. ill-advised
Adjective
  • Unprovoked criticisms, accusations of stealing from the ailing parent and misguided health decisions often emerge from siblings and other family members.
    — Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 10 Aug. 2026
  • First, misguided assumptions lead to isolation, as leaders wrongly believe others will react negatively to outreach, fostering social pessimism.
    — Julie Kratz, Forbes.com, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of misguided
Adjective
  • Dawicki hopes the test will reduce the unnecessary use of antibiotics, and slow the current march toward antibiotic resistance that has already rendered several antibiotics ineffective.
    — Alice Park, Time, 7 Aug. 2026
  • But the difference isn't so stark as to render CDs ineffective now.
    — Matt Richardson, CBS News, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of ineffective
Adjective
  • Jaynes pleaded not guilty Monday to a felony count of leaving the scene of an accident causing property damage of more than $10,000 and a traffic violation of careless and prohibited driving.
    — Grant Lancaster, Arkansas Online, 29 July 2026
  • Myers, however, threw a careless hit that concussed Matty Beniers during his rookie campaign, and Kraken fans have long remembered that sequence.
    — Sean McIndoe, New York Times, 25 July 2026
Definition of careless
Adjective
  • However, long-term makeup storage is ill-advised.
    — Hallie Milstein, Southern Living, 17 June 2026
  • Of all the Yellowstone spinoffs, Dutton Ranch feels like the most can’t-miss — and maybe also the most ill-advised.
    — Noel Murray, Vulture, 15 May 2026
Definition of ill-advised

Browse Nearby Words

misdiagnosing
misdirected
misdirection
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Cite this Entry

“Misdirected.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/misdirected. Accessed 14 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on misdirected

Nglish: Translation of misdirected for Spanish Speakers

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