Meaning & use
Misnomer
Last updated
A wrong or inaccurate name or designation applied to a person or thing.
See it in a sentence
Calling it a 'silent' movie is something of a misnomer, since these films were usually shown with live music.
The 'freshman fifteen' is largely a misnomer, as research shows most students gain far less weight.
A note on using this word
It comes from the legal French 'mesnommer,' meaning 'to misname,' once used to describe an error in naming a party in a document.
Words with a similar meaning
misnamingmisleading term
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