correction
Americannoun
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corrections
plural
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something that is substituted or proposed for what is wrong or inaccurate; emendation.
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the act of correcting.
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punishment intended to reform, improve, or rehabilitate; chastisement; reproof.
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Usually corrections. the various methods, as incarceration, parole, and probation, by which society deals with convicted offenders.
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a quantity applied or other adjustment made in order to increase accuracy, as in the use of an instrument or the solution of a problem.
A five degree correction will put the ship on course.
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a reversal of the trend of stock prices, especially temporarily, as after a sharp advance or decline in the previous trading sessions.
noun
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the act or process of correcting
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something offered or substituted for an error; an improvement
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the act or process of punishing; reproof
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a number or quantity added to or subtracted from a scientific or mathematical calculation or observation to increase its accuracy
Usage
What is a correction? A correction is something substituted for something that is wrong or inaccurate, such as when a newspaper issues a correction to a story it got wrong. A correction is also an adjustment or addition to something to make it more accurate, as when you make a steering correction while driving to ensure you are in the center of your lane. A correction is also a punishment that is meant to help you reform or improve. This is the type of correction connected with prisons, also called correctional facilities. Example: We are applying a correction to the story after it came out that one of the sources was lying.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of correction
1300–50; Middle English correccio ( u ) n (< Anglo-French ) < Latin corrēctiōn- (stem of corrēctiō ) a setting straight. See correct, -ion
Explanation
When you fix a mistake, you make a correction, a change that rights a wrong. When you correct a misspelled word, you’ve made a correction. Well done! Correction also applies to punishment, which is another way to right a wrong. A correction is an improvement or a revision when there's something that needs to be fixed. Newspapers issue corrections for previously printed errors, and a poorly written law might get the correction it needs after voters choose to amend it. Sometimes correction is also used to mean "punishment or discipline," and a correction or correctional facility is another word for jail. Correction can also mean "a drop in the value of a stock that was artificially high."
Vocabulary lists containing correction
Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -ion, -tion, -ation
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"Weaker or less durable AI investments and profitability could be a shock that triggers a market correction," the report said.
From Barron's ● Oct. 17, 2026
It is rather to ensure that markets will be able to operate effectively even in a correction and without recourse to public bailouts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
A No 10 spokeswoman said a correction had been issued to Hansard, the official report of parliamentary debates, and would be "published in due course".
From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026
The falsehood had been viewed millions of times before the correction arrived.
From Salon ● Oct. 15, 2026
He would have felt bad if two boys were in the house of correction for something they did not do.
From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
It is also more than twice as long as the average gap of 246 days between corrections, going back to 1928.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026
This is smaller than previous corrections, Citi notes, but investors should buy the dip nevertheless.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026
Will Matthews, a corrections spokesperson, said in a statement after this article first published that the state sent $995,000 to the Riverside County Workforce Development Division in August 2024.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2026
She directed core participants to provide any corrections to errors or omissions by no later than 31 December.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
Scarff wasn’t a newbie like many of us others; he had worked corrections in Maryland before coming here.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
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