misinformation

[mis-in-fer-mey-shuhn]

noun

1. false information that is spread, regardless of whether there is intent to mislead.

   In the chaotic hours after the earthquake, a lot of misinformation was reported in the news.

Word History and Origins

Origin of misinformation¹

First recorded in 1580–90; mis- ¹ ( def. ) + information ( def. )

Example Sentences

They are concerned that the new tools could facilitate abuses of users’ likeness, despite built-in protections, and that videos could spread misinformation.

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The reality, though, is starkly different, one where Trumpism is a form of religious politics where faith, emotions, culture, storytelling, disinformation, misinformation and conspiracism dominate.

Read more on Salon

"It's still very early on in their investigation and they've asked residents not to speculate to avoid misinformation spreading."

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Marks resigned from the FDA in March, saying Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, “wishes subservient confirmation of his misinformation and lies.”

Read more on Barron's

Last week, the UN said that at least 22 people had been killed and more than 100 injured in the protests, but the government rejected the figures, describing them as based on "rumours and misinformation".

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• falsity 
• misreport 
• misstatement www.thesaurus.com

When To Use

What's the difference between misinformation and disinformation?

Misinformation refers to false information, regardless of whether or not it’s intended to mislead or deceive people. Disinformation, in contrast, refers to false information that’s spread with the specific intent of misleading or deceiving people.Due to their similarity, the terms are sometimes used in overlapping ways. All disinformation is misinformation, but not all misinformation is disinformation. Disinformation is the more specific of the two because it always implies that the false information is being provided or spread on purpose.Disinformation is especially used in the context of large-scale deception, such as a disinformation campaign by a government that targets the population of another country. Misinformation can be spread with the intent to trick people or just because someone incorrectly thinks it’s true.This distinction can also be seen in the difference between their verb forms, misinform and disinform. To misinform someone is to provide them with wrong information, but it doesn’t necessarily mean it was intentional. Disinform, which is much less commonly used, means to intentionally provide or spread false information.One way to remember the difference between misinformation and disinformation is to remember that misinformation can be a mistake, while disinformation is not just false but dishonest.Here’s an example of misinformation and disinformation used correctly in a sentence.Example: The intelligence report concluded that the rumors spread prior to the election were not simply the result of misinformation but rather of coordinated disinformation by a foreign power.Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between misinformation and disinformation.