misword

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English

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Etymology 1

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From mis- +‎ word; formed separately from Etymology 2.

Pronunciation

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Verb

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misword (third-person singular simple present miswords, present participle miswording, simple past and past participle misworded)

  1. (transitive) To word incorrectly.
    Synonyms: misphrase, misstate
    Coordinate terms: rephrase, reword; recompose
    I misworded my offer: I meant help, not rescue.
See also
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Etymology 2

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From Middle English mysword; equivalent to mis- +‎ word.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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misword (plural miswords)

  1. (obsolete, in later use dialectal) An insult.
    • 1659-1661, Thomas Rugge, Diurnal[1]:
      He then came down, took away his ladder, not a misword said to him, and by whose order it was done was not then known.
    • 1846, “The Young Market-Woman”, in Belford Regis; Or, Sketches of a Country Town[2], Richard Bentley, page 237:
      And, as for yourself, Master Matthew, why I 've known you these fifty years, and never heard man, woman, or child speak a misword of you in my life.
    • 1934, Alfred Allen Brockington, Mysticism and Poetry on a Basis of Experience[3], Kennikat Press, page 24:
      A woman who used to work in my house told me that she 'never 'ad a misword with her 'usband.'

Middle English

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Noun

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misword

  1. Alternative form of mysword