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misquote

American

[mis-kwoht] / mɪsˈkwoʊt /

verb (used with or without object)

to quote incorrectly.

noun

a quotation that is incorrect.

misquote British

/ ˌmɪsˈkwəʊt /

verb

to quote (a text, speech, etc) inaccurately

"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

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Etymology

Origin of misquote

First recorded in 1590–1600; mis- ¹ + quote

Explanation

To misquote someone is to incorrectly repeat the words they've said. It's unethical for a journalist to deliberately misquote the subject of an interview. It's extremely common for people to misquote famous figures like Gandhi (who never literally said, "Be the change you wish to see in the world") and Machiavelli (who didn't exactly say, "The ends justify the means"). These examples can also be called misquotes. As with many words, Shakespeare is credited with being the first to use this combination of mis-, "wrong," and quote, "repeat or copy out exact words."

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Vocabulary lists containing misquote

Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Prefixes: mis-

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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.

And, to misquote a well-known Monty Python line, “no one ever expects a pandemic.”

From Seattle Times • Feb. 16, 2024

To misquote Faulkner only slightly, the past, in America, is never really past.

From Salon • Nov. 26, 2023

Ogden continued: "It affected what we wore and changed our lives forever. To misquote Dorothy, 'Lads, I've a feeling we're not on Oldham Street anymore!'"

From BBC • Nov. 2, 2023

“This is a misquote that disproves itself by propagating through the internet as Cunningham’s Law.”

From Slate • Feb. 3, 2023

Danny caught his father in a misquote, ran to get a Talmud from a shelf, and triumphantly showed his father where he had been wrong.

From "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023