mismean en · VERB
Etymology
From mis- + mean.
Meanings
-
(transitive) To mean or intend wrongly; mistake the meaning of; misinterpret.
If we ever misstate the facts it is, alas, because sometimes we mismean the proposition that we utter.
1914, Granville Stanley Hall, Carl Allanmore Murchison, The Journal of genetic psychology:To mismean is not to mean; to mismean is to honor a meaning glimpsed but unmeant.
1978, Clayton Eshleman, What she means:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| mismeans | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic | |
| mismeaning | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| mismeant | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| mismeant | Tense=Past | lexicographic |