correction

American  

[kuh-rek-shuhn] / kəˈrɛk ʃən /

noun

• corrections
  plural

1. something that is substituted or proposed for what is wrong or inaccurate; emendation.

2. the act of correcting.

3. punishment intended to reform, improve, or rehabilitate; chastisement; reproof.

4. Usually corrections. the various methods, as incarceration, parole, and probation, by which society deals with convicted offenders.

5. 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.

6. a reversal of the trend of stock prices, especially temporarily, as after a sharp advance or decline in the previous trading sessions.

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correction British  

/ kəˈrɛkʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of correcting

2. something offered or substituted for an error; an improvement

3. the act or process of punishing; reproof

4. a number or quantity added to or subtracted from a scientific or mathematical calculation or observation to increase its accuracy

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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

• noncorrection
  noun
• precorrection
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• corrections
  plural

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."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

correction corrections

Then came a confusing correction: A product sample the agency had initially described as positive was later determined to be a false positive.

From Salon ● Aug. 14, 2026

“I think we’ve come off of a pretty violent correction in the AI trade,” said Drew Cupps, portfolio manager at Polen Capital.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026

He also noted that a retired professor had previously raised concerns about Arday's subsequent academic articles, which led to two journals issuing correction notes.

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026

Its share price has outpaced fundamentals, and a potential correction could come after the share goes ex-dividend next month, Lim says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026

“I hear that some of you decided to be prison guards instead of correction officers last night,” Sergeant Bloom chastened us.

From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover

That indictment triggered an illegal strike by corrections officers.

From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2026

Ditto, the stock market, despite those feared corrections and recessions.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 8, 2026

That meant he was making corrections to the steering that Antonelli did not have to do.

From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026

Born Halroy Candis Williams on Dec. 14, 1938, in Columbus, Ohio, Williams was working as a juvenile corrections officer when he decided to pursue his dreams of becoming an actor.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2026

Thinking maybe Albany was unnecessarily equating me with the devil, I sent a signed copy to the commissioner of corrections, which he acknowledged with a curt note; I never' heard from him again.

From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover