misconstrue
verb
mis·con·strue
ˌmis-kən-ˈstrü 
misconstrued; misconstruing
1
: to interpret (something, such as a statement or action) wrongly : misinterpret
misconstrued her words/meaning/silence
He does not want his real name used in the newspaper because even the most innocent statement could be misconstrued here and lead to trouble, he says.—
Lynne Duke
Lynne DukeI instantly turned away, lest he should see and misconstrue my emotion.—Anne Brontë
Anne Brontë2
: to misinterpret the meaning, intention, or character of (someone)
… it is the post-Vietnam revisionists who have most ironically misconstrued [Herman] Melville.—Frederick Crews
Frederick Crews… a sad sack whom no one would misconstrue as charming.—Karen Karbo
Karen KarboExamples of misconstrue in a Sentence
claimed that the press had misconstrued her comments
Recent Examples on the Web
Some argue that the centrality of conflict and aggression in human evolutionary history is overstated and even misconstrued.
—Big Think, 18 Oct. 2025
But no matter the intent — the intent can be right, but when things get misconstrued, or however the media wants to portray it, that leaves a void of silence and a lot of questions for the guys on our team.
—Saad Yousuf, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
But no matter the intent, intent can be right, but when things get misconstrued or however the media wants to portray it, that leaves a void of silence and a lot of questions for the guys on our team.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2025
No good will come to the Palestinian cause from any association, however misconstrued, with violent attacks such as the one in Manchester.
—Hussein Ibish, The Atlantic, 7 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for misconstrue
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Big Think, 18 Oct. 2025
But no matter the intent — the intent can be right, but when things get misconstrued, or however the media wants to portray it, that leaves a void of silence and a lot of questions for the guys on our team.
—Saad Yousuf, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
But no matter the intent, intent can be right, but when things get misconstrued or however the media wants to portray it, that leaves a void of silence and a lot of questions for the guys on our team.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2025
No good will come to the Palestinian cause from any association, however misconstrued, with violent attacks such as the one in Manchester.
—Hussein Ibish, The Atlantic, 7 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for misconstrue
Cite this Entry
“Misconstrue.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/misconstrue. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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