1
as in blunders
a wrong judgment
they made a mistake when they thought the young pitcher was ready to be called up to the major leagues
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in errors
an unintentional departure from truth or accuracy
made a mistake on the exam that almost cost her a passing grade
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in misunderstands
to fail to understand the true or actual meaning of
the auctioneer mistook my nod for a bid, and I ended up buying a painting I don't even like
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in underestimates
to make an incorrect judgment regarding
you seriously mistake me if you think I scare so easily
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in confuses
to fail to differentiate (a thing) from something similar or related
she mistook physical attraction for love
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mistakes
Jenny Catlin, New York Times, 12 Mar. 2026
However, before planting your favorite blooms in these vessels, there are a few common mistakes to be aware of.
—Alexandra Kelly, Martha Stewart, 12 Mar. 2026
When traffic is unpredictable, and everyone’s on edge, small mistakes can snowball quickly.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 12 Mar. 2026
The Creature tells its story, and hearing its perspective allows a dying Victor to acknowledge his mistakes.
—Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 12 Mar. 2026
But the concern remains that relying on AI for parts of its operations or decision-making can lead to mistakes in military operations.
—Kevin Collier, NBC news, 11 Mar. 2026
Can America’s mom also be a three-dimensional person who makes her own mistakes?
—Whitney Friedlander, Los Angeles Times, 10 Mar. 2026
Black children are seen as threats to be neutralized, not as children who make mistakes.
—Erika Strauss Chavarria, Baltimore Sun, 10 Mar. 2026
Overall, responses were 18% less likely to contain factual mistakes.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 5 Mar. 2026
Matt Richardson, CBS News, 5 Mar. 2026
In the end, Gail mistakes Paul for a burglar and sends a mob of angry neighbors after him.
—Los Angeles Times, 31 Jan. 2026
No one mistakes him for a devout Christian or a person of faith or morality.
—Hillary Rodham Clinton, The Atlantic, 29 Jan. 2026
For someone who mistakes dependency as weakness, relying on someone can signal a loss of autonomy.
—Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 7 Jan. 2026
The stage is thus set for an Eddington-style standoff, as Hegseth arrives in South Park and immediately mistakes the race for an Antifa uprising.
—Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 27 Nov. 2025
Her unfinished palace becomes a mirror to a culture that mistakes accumulation for meaning.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 10 Nov. 2025
My father mistakes it for the verb to bray, like a donkey.
—Literary Hub, 17 Oct. 2025
When the user clicks that link, the browser mistakes the malicious prompt for an instruction from the user—and begins carrying it out.
—Billy Perrigo, Time, 7 Oct. 2025
Noun
Last week, Bay Hill punished mistakes with force.
—Jenny Catlin, New York Times, 12 Mar. 2026
However, before planting your favorite blooms in these vessels, there are a few common mistakes to be aware of.
—Alexandra Kelly, Martha Stewart, 12 Mar. 2026
When traffic is unpredictable, and everyone’s on edge, small mistakes can snowball quickly.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 12 Mar. 2026
The Creature tells its story, and hearing its perspective allows a dying Victor to acknowledge his mistakes.
—Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 12 Mar. 2026
But the concern remains that relying on AI for parts of its operations or decision-making can lead to mistakes in military operations.
—Kevin Collier, NBC news, 11 Mar. 2026
Can America’s mom also be a three-dimensional person who makes her own mistakes?
—Whitney Friedlander, Los Angeles Times, 10 Mar. 2026
Black children are seen as threats to be neutralized, not as children who make mistakes.
—Erika Strauss Chavarria, Baltimore Sun, 10 Mar. 2026
Overall, responses were 18% less likely to contain factual mistakes.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 5 Mar. 2026
Verb
Homebuyers should know which mistakes to protect themselves from to improve their chances of borrowing success this March.
—Matt Richardson, CBS News, 5 Mar. 2026
In the end, Gail mistakes Paul for a burglar and sends a mob of angry neighbors after him.
—Los Angeles Times, 31 Jan. 2026
No one mistakes him for a devout Christian or a person of faith or morality.
—Hillary Rodham Clinton, The Atlantic, 29 Jan. 2026
For someone who mistakes dependency as weakness, relying on someone can signal a loss of autonomy.
—Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 7 Jan. 2026
The stage is thus set for an Eddington-style standoff, as Hegseth arrives in South Park and immediately mistakes the race for an Antifa uprising.
—Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 27 Nov. 2025
Her unfinished palace becomes a mirror to a culture that mistakes accumulation for meaning.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 10 Nov. 2025
My father mistakes it for the verb to bray, like a donkey.
—Literary Hub, 17 Oct. 2025
When the user clicks that link, the browser mistakes the malicious prompt for an instruction from the user—and begins carrying it out.
—Billy Perrigo, Time, 7 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mistakes
Noun
-
Noem’s dissmissal comes after she was berated by lawmakers on Capitol Hill over a series of disastrous blunders by her department, including the killings of two American citizens by border patrol agents in Minneapolis and apparent attempts by DHS to stifle investigations into the shootings.—
Emily Zemler,
Rolling Stone,
6 Mar. 2026
-
While the Raptors have still been good in clutch situations — when the scoring margin is within five in the final five minutes of a game — that sample has included some notable blunders.—
Eric Koreen,
New York Times,
6 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
No man’s land Remarkably, all of this has been happening in a regulatory vacuum and with technology that is known to make errors.—
Parmy Olson,
Mercury News,
7 Mar. 2026
-
Documents released since December have included redaction errors, leaked victim identities, and ongoing complaints of mishandling by department officials.—
Alanna Durkin Richer,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Requiring them to operate as ordinary MPIA applicants misunderstands their role and undermines their purpose.—
Vaughn Stewart,
Baltimore Sun,
7 Mar. 2026
-
Treating Pahlavi as a shortcut to stability misunderstands both Iran’s society and the nature of this uprising.—
Jalil Pakray,
Sun Sentinel,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Telling the story this way elides, smooths over, and underestimates the role of circumstance and dumb luck.—
Charles Yu,
The Atlantic,
5 Mar. 2026
-
The problem is that this comparison often oversimplifies what Social Security actually is and underestimates how much risk and leverage already exist in today’s financial markets.—
Bruce Helmer,
Twin Cities,
28 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Learn about Outside Online's affiliate link policy Go somewhere that confuses your algorithm.—
Kevin Sintumuang,
Outside,
10 Mar. 2026
-
An actress in 1962 Cuban, as its missiles crisis rages, confuses her role in a film and real life.—
John Hopewell,
Variety,
9 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Ullrich stresses the role of tactical mistakes and misjudgments, not least by the far left, which shortsightedly refused to compromise its beliefs and join with more moderate groups to oppose democratic backsliding.—
Foreign Affairs,
Foreign Affairs,
16 Dec. 2025
-
Torsten Sløk, chief economist at Apollo Global Management, said forecasts of an imminent slowdown have been repeatedly wrong, and the economics profession should start grappling with its track record of misjudgments.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
This discussion misses some devastating math.—
Rafael Leon,
Chicago Tribune,
11 Mar. 2026
-
Of course, scanning misses a lot.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Home designer Allisa Jacobs wrote in a blog post that AI routinely misjudges the proportions and sizes of rooms and furniture, suggesting pieces that wouldn’t realistically fit in the space.—
Reed Albergotti,
semafor.com,
1 Oct. 2025
-
But the Fed just kind of misjudges what's going on and pushes too hard on interest rates and pushes the economy in.—
Hugh Cameron,
MSNBC Newsweek,
2 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mistakes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mistakes. Accessed 14 Mar. 2026.
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