wrong 1 of 4

adjective

Definition of wrongnext
1
as in unacceptable
falling short of a standard there is something wrong with this cake—it has a funny taste

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2
as in incorrect
having an opinion that does not agree with truth or the facts I'm sorry, but the latest research proves you wrong

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3
as in inappropriate
not appropriate for a particular occasion or situation has a knack for saying just the wrong thing

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4
as in erroneous
not being in agreement with what is true her answer that Thomas Jefferson was the second president of the United States is wrong—it was John Adams, of course

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5
as in immoral
not conforming to a high moral standard; morally unacceptable was caught doing something wrong

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wrong

2 of 4

noun

ˈrȯŋ How to pronounce wrong (audio)
1
as in bad
that which is morally unacceptable any reasonable person should be expected to know the difference between right and wrong

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2
as in injustice
unfair or inadequate treatment of someone or something or an instance of this trying to right all the wrongs in the world

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wrong

3 of 4

adverb

as in badly
off the desired or intended path or course all of our carefully laid plans have gone wrong

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wrong

4 of 4

verb

as in to harm

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Synonym Chooser

How does the noun wrong contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of wrong are grievance, injury, and injustice. While all these words mean "an act that inflicts undeserved hurt," wrong applies also in law to any act punishable according to the criminal code; it may apply more generally to any flagrant injustice.

determined to right society's wrongs

When might grievance be a better fit than wrong?

The words grievance and wrong are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, grievance applies to a circumstance or condition that constitutes an injustice to the sufferer and gives just ground for complaint.

a list of employee grievances

In what contexts can injury take the place of wrong?

Although the words injury and wrong have much in common, injury applies in law specifically to an injustice for which one may sue to recover compensation.

libel constitutes a legal injury

Where would injustice be a reasonable alternative to wrong?

The synonyms injustice and wrong are sometimes interchangeable, but injustice applies to any act that involves unfairness to another or violation of one's rights.

the injustices suffered by the lower classes

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 wrong
Adjective
In just over a decade, mRNA has gone from molecular misfit to biomedical golden child, in no small part because of Bancel’s efforts at Moderna to prove the naysayers wrong. — Time, 12 Nov. 2026 Three people are dead after a wrong-way crash on the 91 Freeway in Riverside on Thursday morning. — Chelsea Hylton, CBS News, 12 Nov. 2026
Noun
Truth is always in harmony with herself, and is not concerned chiefly to reveal the justice that may consist with wrong-doing. — René Ostberg, Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Oct. 2026 The Knicks get their chance to right the wrongs of Ring Night in a rematch with the 76ers in Philly on Friday. — Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 29 Oct. 2026
Adverb
Miami and Cleveland are among the teams currently navigating the fallout of getting that decision wrong. — Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 23 Sep. 2026 Julian is never seen as a bad person, but one who genuinely likes and is attracted to Tessa, thus his failure to recognize doing anything wrong that night. — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 13 Sep. 2026
Verb
This wasn’t an opportunity to defame someone or make this about how I’d been wronged. — Mikael Wood, Los Angeles Times, 5 June 2026 Trump accidentally made the case that when the government’s policies cause harm, reparations should be paid by the government to make those who were wronged whole again, or that they should be compensated in some way. — Dp Opinion, Denver Post, 21 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for wrong
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wrong
  1. unacceptable
  2. incorrect
  3. inappropriate
  4. erroneous
  5. immoral
  6. bad
  7. injustice
  8. badly
Adjective
  • But singling out businesses because their owners are Jewish is unacceptable and has no place in our city.
    — Eva Andersen, CBS News, 6 Nov. 2026
  • William James Middle received its fifth unacceptable rating in a row in the 2025-26 school year.
    — Lina Ruiz, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3 Nov. 2026
Definition of unacceptable
Adjective
  • The Department complies with all record retention obligations, and any suggestion otherwise is incorrect.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 11 Nov. 2026
  • Voting-rights advocates and election experts questioned whether errors in the unverified data contributed to potentially incorrect inactivations, the outlet reported.
    — Sam Stevenson, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Nov. 2026
Definition of incorrect
Adjective
  • Walliams was dropped last year by publisher HarperCollins after allegations were made of inappropriate behavior.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 10 Nov. 2026
  • At the time, The Telegraph reported the publisher’s decision followed an investigation into Walliams’ inappropriate behaviour towards young women.
    — Issy Ronald, CNN Money, 10 Nov. 2026
Definition of inappropriate
Adjective
  • Rather than pulling Herta’s IndyCar results from the official scoring, the team apparently relied on IndyCar’s erroneous website.
    — Jonathan M. Gitlin, ArsTechnica, 2 Nov. 2026
  • According to a lawsuit, a coding error resulted in erroneous scores being generated and reported to third parties over a three-week period between March and April 2022.
    — Brian Sloan,Dan Avery, CNBC, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of erroneous
Adjective
  • Hollywood called out as immoral as studio puts paying viewers in charge of the screen.
    — , FOXNews.com, 29 Oct. 2026
  • Convince people that an innocent person represents an existential threat, furnish them with a frightening conspiracy theory about an immoral enemy, and some may become willing to kill.
    — Maxwell Adler, Vanity Fair, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of immoral
Noun
  • In addition to public goods, AI will also create public bads.
    — James Broughel, Forbes.com, 8 June 2026
  • Naturally, the meeting is a flop because no one was prepared, and their spontaneous ideas are frankly fireable-offense bad (a baguette bag shaped like a baguette for Paris?
    — Jessica M. Goldstein, Vulture, 18 Dec. 2025
Definition of bad
Noun
  • When running as a presidential candidate in 2024, Kennedy made several direct appeals for addressing environmental injustice, the racially inequitable distribution of environmental harms in minority communities.
    — Jerel Ezell, STAT, 12 Nov. 2026
  • Because to us, an injustice looks more like an all-white nominee pool, not a few excluded men.
    — Marissa R. Moss, Rolling Stone, 9 Nov. 2026
Definition of injustice
Adverb
  • Then poachers kill his partner and child, leaving Norden badly wounded.
    — Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 10 Nov. 2026
  • Now evicted from her West Wing corner office, with the president’s agenda in tatters, Wiles has learned that fealty to Trump almost always ends badly.
    — Chris Whipple, Vanity Fair, 10 Nov. 2026
Definition of badly

Phrases Containing wrong

Browse Nearby Words

written up
wrong
wrongdoer
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Cite this Entry

“Wrong.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wrong. Accessed 14 Nov. 2026.

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