Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. An error in naming a person or place.
- n. Application of a wrong name.
- n. A name wrongly or unsuitably applied to a person or an object.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A misnaming; the act of applying a wrong name or designation.
- n. In law, an error in name; misstatement in a document of the name of a person. Misnomers in proceedings are now frequently amended by the court, provided no party has been misled or prejudiced.
- n. Hence A mistaken name or designation; a misapplied term.
- To designate by a mistaken or unsuitable name; misname.
Wiktionary
- n. A use of a term asserted to be misleading.
- n. A term asserted to be widely used incorrectly.
- n. A term whose sense in common usage conflicts with a technical sense.
- v. To use a misleading term; to misname.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. The misnaming of a person in a legal instrument, as in a complaint or indictment; any misnaming of a person or thing; a wrong or inapplicable name or title.
- v. To misname.
WordNet 3.0
- n. an incorrect or unsuitable name
Etymologies
- Middle English misnoumer, from Old French mesnomer, to misname : mes-, wrongly; see mis-1 + nommer, to name (from Latin nōmināre, from nōmen, name; see nŏ̄-men- in Indo-European roots).
Examples
“Give Bush credit for his Aids program in Africa, but his “compassionate conservatism” was a misnomer from the “get go”.”
“Fox News - aka Bush/Cheney/Limpbaugh Bastion of Lies - is a misnomer from the get-go.”
“The Dion tax “shift” and “revenue neutral” misnomer is now being exposed for every deceitful aspect.”
“The scientific misnomer is now reduced to a historical (and extremely harmful) moniker of a bygone era.”
Comparing Teleological Predictions with their Non-teleological Counterparts
“Continental ideas on the subject, inclined to think the term a misnomer, and a reflection upon Europe and America.”
“_Julius Cæsar_, pronouncing the title a misnomer, on the ground that”
“The essay did make the point that the name “greenhouse effect” is a misnomer, which is correct.”
“Last year the day was labelled a misnomer, with the majority of motorists ignoring it, although some said they would be willing to try public transport if the system were improved.”
“Calling the term a misnomer, Greenwood says, "there's a misperception that improving a product somehow thwarts generic companies from getting in the game.”
“It was SIOA that first coined the misnomer "Mosque at Ground Zero," purposely twisting the reality that the proposed Muslim cultural center near Ground Zero is neither a Mosque nor at”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘misnomer’.
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GRE Barrons Wordlist
A complete Barron's Wordlist for GRE preparation. Your online flashcard replacement.
abase, abash, abate, abbreviate, abdicate, aberrant, aberration, abet, abeyance, abhor, abject, abjure and 4084 more...
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sarahochap1
english 7- summer school
apposite, jubilant, supplication, penchant, kiosk, apprehensive, ecology, insular, misnomer, culinary, rhetorical, awry and 13 more...
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Incorrectum
Mistakes, Errors and Accidents.
nihilartikel, solecism, bevue, corrigendum, acyrology, cacoepy, fido, hamartithia, jeofail, mésalliance, mumpsimus, pseudochronism and 63 more...
NUTZFORdBUCKS Class 3 weapons are a misnomer. They are Class 2 weapons that you purchase from a Class 3 dealer. May 5, 2012
yarb ...unless it's a cute nice dog which kills. Sep 29, 2010
looftma a cute nice dog, named killer, is a misnomer. Sep 27, 2010
plethora Red coral is actually red. Sometimes pink. Mar 2, 2009
dontcry A titmouse is a bird. Mar 2, 2009
sionnach Well, I know that Panama hats come from Ecuador. I'll leave the other two to greater Wordieminds. Mar 1, 2009
tbtabby What kind of animal is a titmouse?
What country do Panama hats come from?
What color is the red coral of the Mediterranean? Mar 1, 2009