misleading

[mis-lee-ding]

adjective

1. deceptive; tending to mislead.

Other Word Forms

• misleadingly adverb
• misleadingness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of misleading¹

First recorded in 1630–40; mislead + -ing ²

Example Sentences

Zuma-Sambudlia has denied intentionally misleading anyone and says she is "profoundly shocked", adding that she herself is a victim of deception and manipulation.

Read more on BBC

Having already been threatened with prosecution, however, Ian said they knew the process of returning Liam to care would be "adversarial" and "laden with threats and misleading bullying tactics".

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Each side had accused the other of negotiating in bad faith and of misleading consumers about the issues dividing them.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

That is why focusing on simple market-share snapshots can be misleading.

Read more on Barron's

And if prior misleading statements are revealed in a semiannual reporting regime, we can expect to see sharper market reactions and steeper investor losses.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• ambiguous 
• deceitful 
• disingenuous 
• evasive 
• false 
• inaccurate 
• puzzling 
• wrong