as in to misstate
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Recent Examples of misspeak
The health secretary also appeared to misspeak at the meeting, saying two people had died of the disease.
—
Devi Shastri and Amanda Seitz The Associated Press, arkansasonline.com, 27 Feb. 2025
These leaders don’t merely lie or misspeak or make light of life and death.
—Megan Garber, The Atlantic, 23 Oct. 2024
Walz was criticized following the Oct. 1 debate for flubbing an answer about allegedly misspeaking about being in Hong Kong during the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 21 Oct. 2024
The Kremlin’s propaganda often uses instances of Biden misspeaking as proof of his ineptitude as the man in charge of Ukraine’s top military backer.
—Yuliya Talmazan, NBC News, 12 July 2024
Elsewhere, Claude and Angot’s mother, who had Christine out of wedlock and fought to get her father to recognize his child in a legal sense, are both similarly upbraided for misspeaking about Christine’s trauma in subtle ways, or for not being sympathetic in the right way.
—Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 Feb. 2024
People are just supposed to like you — you’re not supposed to misspeak, look fat, date the wrong person, have your makeup look a different color.
—Elias Leight, Rolling Stone, 12 Feb. 2022
Dear Annie: Here is another perspective on the hyperaccurate person who corrects everyone who misspeaks.
—Annie Lane, oregonlive, 19 May 2020
In interviews, some voters said Mr. Gantz reminded them of Yitzhak Rabin, who also could misspeak and appear embarrassed when facing the news media.
—David M. Halbfinger, New York Times, 24 Aug. 2019
Devi Shastri and Amanda Seitz The Associated Press, arkansasonline.com, 27 Feb. 2025
These leaders don’t merely lie or misspeak or make light of life and death.
—Megan Garber, The Atlantic, 23 Oct. 2024
Walz was criticized following the Oct. 1 debate for flubbing an answer about allegedly misspeaking about being in Hong Kong during the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 21 Oct. 2024
The Kremlin’s propaganda often uses instances of Biden misspeaking as proof of his ineptitude as the man in charge of Ukraine’s top military backer.
—Yuliya Talmazan, NBC News, 12 July 2024
Elsewhere, Claude and Angot’s mother, who had Christine out of wedlock and fought to get her father to recognize his child in a legal sense, are both similarly upbraided for misspeaking about Christine’s trauma in subtle ways, or for not being sympathetic in the right way.
—Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 Feb. 2024
People are just supposed to like you — you’re not supposed to misspeak, look fat, date the wrong person, have your makeup look a different color.
—Elias Leight, Rolling Stone, 12 Feb. 2022
Dear Annie: Here is another perspective on the hyperaccurate person who corrects everyone who misspeaks.
—Annie Lane, oregonlive, 19 May 2020
In interviews, some voters said Mr. Gantz reminded them of Yitzhak Rabin, who also could misspeak and appear embarrassed when facing the news media.
—David M. Halbfinger, New York Times, 24 Aug. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for misspeak
Verb
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Correction: Due to a reporting error, an earlier version of this story misstated the name of the hospital where Lindsay Clancy is being treated.—
John R. Ellement,
BostonGlobe.com,
1 May 2023
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An earlier version of this article misstated Emily Busch’s position.—
Chuck Todd,
NBC News,
18 Apr. 2023
Verb
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Most Canadians want uncomplicated lives, a desire for calm that can be misinterpreted by louder people as meekness.—
Chris Jones,
The Atlantic,
14 Mar. 2025
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The researchers confirmed the accuracy of the audit in a memo to investigators, but said there were instances where the study was misunderstood or misinterpreted.—
Lisa M. Krieger,
The Mercury News,
29 Jan. 2025
Verb
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The lawsuit, filed by members of the church in October 2024, stems from allegations that Gateway was not transparent with its finances and misrepresented how donations were spent despite generating $100 million in revenue in the past, according to The Christian Post.—
Amy McDaniel,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
17 Mar. 2025
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Practicing Forgiveness—For Your Partner And Yourself Much like gratitude, forgiveness is commonly misrepresented.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes,
15 Mar. 2025
Verb
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The Illusion Of Abundance In A Skewed Market This shift has profoundly distorted the venture deal landscape.—
Joseph Edgar,
Forbes,
14 Mar. 2025
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In the new court filing, phone records show Mortensen tried calling the other four roommates – but got no response – around the time when security camera from a residence close to the home picked up at 4:17 a.m. distorted audio of voices, a whimper, followed by a loud thud, and a barking dog.—
Lauren del Valle,
CNN,
7 Mar. 2025
Verb
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SecNav’s just a big fan, and that message got garbled in a chain-of-command game of telephone.—
Sara Netzley,
EW.com,
11 Feb. 2025
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Without such compatibility, data can be garbled or lost when moving from the radio to the baseband unit, or vice versa.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
23 Apr. 2021
Verb
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The charge of falsifying immigration applications carries up to 10 years in prison if convicted.—
Jason Meisner,
Chicago Tribune,
10 Mar. 2025
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The officers falsified incident reports and denied the family’s actual experience, according to the complaint.—
Julia Marnin,
Sacramento Bee,
26 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Meal prep staple ingredients like cooked vegetables or proteins like chicken, fish, and eggs.—
Amy Brownstein, MS, RDN,
Verywell Health,
19 Mar. 2025
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The task is ostensibly simple: A team of chefs cut food, cook food, and serve up finished dishes to a zombie army known as the, ahem, Unbread.—
Lewis Gordon,
Vulture,
19 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Putin’s constant lies and dissembling undermined his credibility to international interlocutors, such as President Emmanuel Macron of France.—
Lawrence D. Freedman,
Foreign Affairs,
23 Sep. 2022
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Pushing back on reporters, at the time Scher often dissembled and appeared to brush aside concerns about what was clearly an increasingly out-of-control situation.—
Gil Kaufman,
Billboard,
19 July 2024
Cite this Entry
“Misspeak.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/misspeak. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.
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