as in misses
to fail to understand the true or actual meaning of
you misunderstood that poem because you took everything so literally
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Recent Examples of misunderstands
But to argue that any of this research adds up to a substantial account of intelligence misunderstands the nature of such human traits and what can be expected from scientific explanations of them.
—
Eric Turkheimer, The Atlantic, 13 Oct. 2025
In an amicus brief filed to the Supreme Court, the American Psychological Association, the American Psychiatric Association and 12 other professional bodies argued that characterizing talk therapy as mere speech fundamentally misunderstands its therapeutic use and purpose.
—Allison Parshall, Scientific American, 7 Oct. 2025
But a nurse eventually overhears Archer and Hannah discussing it, and misunderstands the situation.
—Claire Franken, TVLine, 1 Oct. 2025
This misunderstands human nature entirely.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
The two men each say the other misunderstands the impacts of Senate Bill 1.
—Shelley Jones, Chicago Tribune, 27 Aug. 2025
King was right that excluding Carrie’s commentary made And Just Like That … feel like a fundamentally different show, but that misunderstands a mechanism that made Sex and the City tick.
—Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 15 Aug. 2025
This doctrinal paradigm fundamentally misunderstands Southern voters.
—Paul Goldman, Hartford Courant, 7 Aug. 2025
Eric Turkheimer, The Atlantic, 13 Oct. 2025
In an amicus brief filed to the Supreme Court, the American Psychological Association, the American Psychiatric Association and 12 other professional bodies argued that characterizing talk therapy as mere speech fundamentally misunderstands its therapeutic use and purpose.
—Allison Parshall, Scientific American, 7 Oct. 2025
But a nurse eventually overhears Archer and Hannah discussing it, and misunderstands the situation.
—Claire Franken, TVLine, 1 Oct. 2025
This misunderstands human nature entirely.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
The two men each say the other misunderstands the impacts of Senate Bill 1.
—Shelley Jones, Chicago Tribune, 27 Aug. 2025
King was right that excluding Carrie’s commentary made And Just Like That … feel like a fundamentally different show, but that misunderstands a mechanism that made Sex and the City tick.
—Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 15 Aug. 2025
This doctrinal paradigm fundamentally misunderstands Southern voters.
—Paul Goldman, Hartford Courant, 7 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for misunderstands
Verb
-
When large and small crowds in large and small towns gather respectfully, even exuberantly, to register their response to the country’s direction, measuring newsworthiness by body count or damage tallies misses the critical story.—
Nancy Gibbs,
Time,
17 Oct. 2025
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That is the Sitake way, the head coach who never misses an opportunity to dance on the field after wins or sing along with his players in the meeting room.—
Christopher Kamrani,
New York Times,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
This badly misreads Gaza's political culture.—
Bobby Ghosh,
Time,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
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My father mistakes it for the verb to bray, like a donkey.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 Oct. 2025
-
The film looks like a million bucks, has a high pedigree of talent, and mistakes constant poking for conversation, endless buzzwords for a buffet of food for thought, incendiary hypotheticals for insight.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
9 Oct. 2025
Verb
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This is the Adriana who takes arguments, willfully misinterprets them, and then comes for someone at the worst possible moment.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
19 Sep. 2025
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Some of the Supreme Court’s own justices have also voiced concerns about whether the Obergefell decision infringes on religious freedom or misinterprets the Constitution.—
Brooke Migdon,
The Hill,
26 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Misunderstands.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/misunderstands. Accessed 25 Oct. 2025.
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