mischaracterize

verb

mis·​char·​ac·​ter·​ize ˌmis-ˈker-ik-tə-ˌrīz How to pronounce mischaracterize (audio)
-ˈka-rik-
mischaracterized; mischaracterizing

transitive verb

: to characterize (someone or something) wrongly
mischaracterized his position on the issue
In many cases, the problems that the news media, activists, and politicians hype are real enough; however they are frequently greatly exaggerated and mischaracterizedBenjamin Radford

Examples of mischaracterize in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
An earlier version mischaracterized the figure. Michael Wayland, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2025 On Friday, Republican leaders began mischaracterizing who would be at the rallies. Sarah D. Wire, USA Today, 18 Oct. 2025 This isn’t to say that the women don’t deserve some privacy, but they are getting paid to share their lives with the public; willfully mischaracterizing what’s happening in their lives during the course of filming goes against the very nature of the show. Brian Moylan, Vulture, 17 Oct. 2025 Late night host Jimmy Kimmel said Wednesday that his comments in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s assassination that preceded his brief suspension by ABC were deliberately mischaracterized by his critics. Ryan Mancini, The Hill, 9 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for mischaracterize

Word History

First Known Use

1798, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of mischaracterize was in 1798

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Cite this Entry

“Mischaracterize.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mischaracterize. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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