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Meaning & use

misleading

adjective·Academic

Last updated

UK/ˌmɪsˈliːdɪŋ/
US/ˌmɪsˈliːdɪŋ/

“misleading” is a form of “mislead”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.

Meaning

  1. adjectivecomparable

    Likely to make people believe something that is not true, whether the effect is planned or accidental.

    Grammar: Before a noun or after a verb: a misleading headline, the figures are misleading.

    Patterns

    • misleading to do something
    • potentially misleading

    The headline was misleading because the story said something else.

    It would be misleading to say the project is finished.

    The chart looks neat but gives a misleading picture of sales.

Word forms

comparativemore misleading
superlativemost misleading

Common combinations

misleading information
The leaflet contained misleading information about side effects.
misleading advertising
Regulators fined the company for misleading advertising.
highly misleading
The label is highly misleading.
misleading impression
The photo creates a misleading impression of the hotel.
potentially misleading
Experts warned the statistics were potentially misleading.

Synonyms and how they differ

deceptive
Deceptive often suggests that the false impression is deliberate, whereas misleading may happen by accident.
false
False says something is simply untrue, while misleading can describe things that are technically true but give a wrong idea.
confusing
Confusing means hard to understand, while misleading leads you to a wrong conclusion.
inaccurate
Inaccurate means incorrect in details and does not necessarily push people toward a wrong belief.

Opposites

accuratehonest

Word family

mislead verb
to cause someone to believe something untrue
misleadingly adverb
in a way that gives a false impression
misled adjective
given a false idea by someone or something
lead verb
to guide or show the way

Commonly confused: misleading or misguided? misleading or misled?

misleading vs misguided

Misguided describes someone with poor judgment or a mistaken idea, whereas misleading describes the thing that causes a wrong impression.

misleading vs misled

Misled is the past tense and participle of mislead, with no a, while misleading is the -ing form or adjective.

Practice

The brochure showed a sunny beach, but the hotel is miles from the sea, which makes the picture ___.

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