misconduct
Americannoun
-
improper or wrong behavior.
Numerous accusations of sexual misconduct have blighted his campaign.
Her license was revoked for professional misconduct and poor professional performance.
- Synonyms:
- misstep, misdeed, misbehavior, wrongdoing
-
unlawful behavior by an official in regard to their office, or by a person in the administration of justice, such as a lawyer, witness, or juror; malfeasance.
A complaint was filed against the prosecutor, alleging misconduct in the case.
verb (used with object)
-
misconducts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
misconducted,
past participle, past
-
misconducting
present participle
-
to mismanage.
-
to misbehave (oneself ).
noun
verb
-
to conduct (oneself) in such a way
-
to manage (something) badly
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
misconductsimple
-
misconductssimple
-
have misconductedperfect
-
has misconductedperfect
-
am misconductingprogressive
-
are misconductingprogressive
-
is misconductingprogressive
-
have been misconductingperfect progressive
-
has been misconductingperfect progressive
Past
-
misconductedsimple
-
had misconductedperfect
-
was misconductingprogressive
-
were misconductingprogressive
-
had been misconductingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of misconduct
Explanation
Misconduct is any kind of bad, unethical, or illegal activity. When there's misconduct, someone is doing something wrong. Since conduct is behavior, misconduct is behavior that's not quite right: some kind of shady or criminal conduct. If an accountant cooked the books — lied about finances — that's misconduct. A police officer taking a bribe is guilty of misconduct. Often, misconduct specifically refers to someone who does improper things on behalf of someone else, like the misconduct of a dishonest lawyer.
Vocabulary lists containing misconduct
mis-
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
mis-
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Simply Scandalous!
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
One way the dirty trick can easily become a criminal matter is through misconduct by the participants in the course of investigation of a dirty trick.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
In late October, AFP's fact-checkers debunked a likely AI-altered clip that purported to show a former student of Texas Senate candidate James Talarico accusing him of sexual misconduct.
From Barron's ● Nov. 1, 2026
Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said the state’s system for identifying and responding to potential misconduct functioned as intended.
From Salon ● Oct. 31, 2026
Attorneys for Downtown LA Law Group said in court Thursday that the firm plans to drop out of litigation over the Chiquita Canyon landfill amid allegations of misconduct.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 29, 2026
As a result of immunity law, the Court held that a prosecutor cannot be held liable for misconduct in a criminal case, even if he intentionally and illegally withheld evidence of innocence.
From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson
That was just Tkachuk’s second point of the series, fewer than his three misconducts.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 8, 2023
They took four penalties in the first 50-plus minutes of the game and then many more, including three misconducts, in a late scuffle.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 4, 2023
All three Florida goals were of the gritty variety from inside the crease, on a night where tempers flared with 19 penalties — four of them misconducts.
From Fox News ● Mar. 4, 2022
“Those misconducts, they are just unacceptable,” Rojas said of the allegations against Ellis.
From New York Times ● Feb. 17, 2021
The criminal who has completed his sentence ought to be deemed to have purged his offence, and has a right to return to the community and obtain work until, if ever, he again misconducts himself.
From The Empire of the East by H. B. (Helen Barrett) Montgomery
It is usual when any member has misconducted himself, to appoint a small committee to visit the offender, to endeavour to convince him of his error and induce him to forsake it.
From Christian Sects in the Nineteenth Century by Caroline Frances Cornwallis
It would be quite impossible for any one present to have misconducted himself in the manner in which the holder of those letters, Mr. Reynolds, accuses you of having done.
From The Conqueror by Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton
In the first place, she is the daughter of people who flagrantly misconducted themselves--that apparently does her no harm.
From Lady Rose's Daughter by Mrs. Humphry Ward
The practice of compelling girls who had misconducted themselves to stand in church for three Sundays was only given up at Pickering in the first quarter of the nineteenth century.
From The Evolution of an English Town by Gordon Home
She has never misconducted herself; and what is more, she has been cruelly used since she came home.”
From The Claverings by Anthony Trollope
If that's agreed, detectives will then look for evidence that the incident in question saw the suspect "wilfully" neglecting to perform their duty or wilfully misconducting themselves in some other way.
From BBC ● Feb. 19, 2026
Tilt, 31, pleaded guilty at Birmingham Crown Court to wilfully misconducting himself in public office.
From BBC ● Dec. 14, 2022
Tilt, of Barley Green, Birmingham, admitted wilfully misconducting himself in public office at Birmingham Crown Court on Friday.
From BBC ● Nov. 4, 2022
Thus a lot of people are misconducting themselves like this, and would enjoy programming that makes them feel represented in the media.
From New York Times ● Nov. 29, 2017
They followed because, learning that James was going to Perth, they guessed that he intended to apprehend the Master of Oliphant, who had been misconducting himself in Angus.
From James VI and the Gowrie Mystery by Andrew Lang
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
