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Meaning of Misnomer | Babel Free

Noun CEFR B2
(ˌ)mɪsˈnəʊmə

Definitions

  1. A mistake in the naming of a person or place; a misidentification.
  2. An incorrect use of a term, especially one which is misleading; a misname.
  3. A term which is misleading, even if firmly established, technically correct, or both.
  4. Something which is asserted not to be true; a mistaken belief, a falsehood, a myth.

Equivalents

Examples

“Rewilding[…]is also a misnomer, for whether by getting rid of tens of thousands of sheep in Patagonia or introducing a living species as a surrogate for an extinct one – Sayaguesa cattle in place of aurochs in Croatia’s Velebit Mountains, for instance – rewilding requires more human intervention than its name suggests.”
“[…] plaintiff's misstyling himself as corporation in initial complaint constituted case of misnomer.”
“The name Chinese checkers is a misnomer since the game has nothing to do with China.”
“The word blackboard as applied to green or brown chalkboards is a misnomer but is not incorrect, as the broad sense of the word is idiomatic.”
“It’s a misnomer that all doctors have bad handwriting.”

CEFR level

B2
Upper Intermediate
This word is part of the CEFR B2 vocabulary — upper intermediate level.
See all B2 English words →

See also

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