Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

misguide

American  
[mis-gahyd] / mɪsˈgaɪd /

verb (used with object)

misguided, misguiding

  1. to guide wrongly; misdirect.

misguide British  
/ ˌmɪsˈɡaɪd /

verb

  1. (tr) to guide or direct wrongly or badly

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of misguide

1325–75; mis- 1 + guide; replacing Middle English misgien; see guy 2

Explanation

When you misguide someone, you lead them the wrong way. You might accidentally misguide a tourist by instructing him to turn left when he should have gone right. Use the verb misguide when you point someone in the wrong direction, either literally or in a figurative way: "I didn't mean to misguide you when I promised you'd love camping in the desert." Giving bad advice is one way to misguide someone, and giving bad driving directions is another. In the fourteenth century, misguide meant "to go astray," rather than "to lead someone else astray."

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing misguide

President Obama's Speech to the Nation about Terrorism

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!

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.

Misguide, mis-gīd′, v.t. to guide wrongly: to lead into error.—ns.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 2 of 4: E-M) by Various

Now the fair goddess, Fortune, Fall deep in love with thee; and her great charms Misguide thy opposers' swords!

From Coriolanus by Shakespeare, William

Now the faire Goddesse Fortune, Fall deepe in loue with thee, and her great charmes Misguide thy Opposers swords, Bold Gentleman: Prosperity be thy Page    Mar.

From Coriolanus by Shakespeare, William

Definitions 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.