as in to miss
to fail to understand the true or actual meaning of
you misunderstood that poem because you took everything so literally
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of misunderstand
Well-meaning people who try to control another person’s grief may misunderstand that grief is a singular experience or may be unwittingly trying to assuage their own discomfort.
—
Charles Trepany, USA Today, 30 Dec. 2025
Interestingly, people often described fears that were based on misunderstanding how technology works – or fails to work.
—Alaina Vandervoort Burns, The Conversation, 17 Dec. 2025
Brenecki said that judges often face public backlash in such cases like Zarutska's, but many misunderstand the legal constraints in place.
—Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 8 Dec. 2025
In a May interview with Metro months before she was chosen as a Kennedy Center honoree, Gaynor made headlines for her surprising response to a question about what people misunderstand about her.
—Meredith Kile, PEOPLE, 8 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for misunderstand
Charles Trepany, USA Today, 30 Dec. 2025
Interestingly, people often described fears that were based on misunderstanding how technology works – or fails to work.
—Alaina Vandervoort Burns, The Conversation, 17 Dec. 2025
Brenecki said that judges often face public backlash in such cases like Zarutska's, but many misunderstand the legal constraints in place.
—Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 8 Dec. 2025
In a May interview with Metro months before she was chosen as a Kennedy Center honoree, Gaynor made headlines for her surprising response to a question about what people misunderstand about her.
—Meredith Kile, PEOPLE, 8 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for misunderstand
Recent Examples of Synonyms for misunderstand
Verb
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The reason for the different numbers of missing and rescued given by police and Archival was not immediately clear.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
9 Jan. 2026
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Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.—
Madison E. Goldberg,
PEOPLE,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
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There could be no mistaking that this was a significant mismatch.—
Thomas Drance,
New York Times,
7 Jan. 2026
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Further investigation revealed that the victim was on board a northbound train, mistaking it for a southbound train.—
Jeramie Bizzle,
CBS News,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Share the plan in writing so no one misreads it.—
Tarot.com,
New York Daily News,
14 Jan. 2026
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Advocates say they are often baked in at the earliest moments of a case, when trauma is misread, documentation never forms, and charging decisions are made before courts ever see the full context.—
Stephen Martin,
Oklahoma Watch,
13 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Some of the viral videos and social media posts have misconstrued publicly available information.—
David Ingram,
NBC news,
4 Jan. 2026
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Ryan Heiden, a labor attorney working with the city from Milwaukee firm von Briesen & Roper, advised the committee against putting any intentions in writing, warning that it could be misconstrued if in the years to come the two departments do indeed merge.—
Bridget Fogarty,
jsonline.com,
19 Dec. 2025
Verb
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It can so easily be misinterpreted and presents a challenge for both the neurodivergent person and the neurotypical.—
Erik Pedersen,
Oc Register,
12 Jan. 2026
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Allegations that are now spreading online could be misinterpreting records or exaggerating minor issues — or could be exposing actual fraudulent activity.—
Jude Joffe-Block,
NPR,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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That is true of leaders anywhere, but Israel’s history has predisposed some of its policymakers to focus excessively on day-to-day survival and to misapprehend or ignore strategic dynamics as a result.—
Andrew P. Miller,
Foreign Affairs,
5 Dec. 2025
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But would her students, turned on everywhere by the dogma of political correctness, misapprehend Haynes’s aim?—
Doreen St. Félix,
The New Yorker,
22 June 2023
Cite this Entry
“Misunderstand.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/misunderstand. Accessed 17 Jan. 2026.
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