incorrect
Americanadjective
-
not correct as to fact; inaccurate; wrong.
an incorrect statement.
-
improper, unbecoming, or inappropriate.
incorrect behavior; incorrect attire.
- Synonyms:
- unsuitable
-
not correct in form, use, or manner.
an incorrect copy.
- Synonyms:
- faulty
adjective
-
false; wrong
an incorrect calculation
-
not fitting or proper
incorrect behaviour
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of incorrect
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin incorrectus “not corrected”; equivalent to in- 3 + correct
Explanation
Incorrect things are wrong or mistaken. Driving the incorrect direction on the highway can be dangerous. Turn around! Using the incorrect name when you greet someone (or eating your soup with the incorrect spoon at a fancy dinner) can be embarrassing. A doctor giving you the incorrect diagnosis is never good. When something is correct, it's proper, accurate, truthful, or without errors, and you get incorrect by adding the "not" prefix, in-.
Vocabulary lists containing incorrect
Fake It 'Til You Make It: Synonyms for "False"
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Lesson 4
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Wrong
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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.
In his resignation statement, he said he wanted to focus on fighting "factually incorrect and entirely false, decades-old allegations" concerning his personal life, describing the investigation by Panorama and the Times as "fundamentally unfair".
From BBC • Jun. 9, 2026
Denying the allegations, he said he wanted to focus on fighting what he called "factually incorrect and entirely false, decades-old allegations concerning my personal life", describing the investigation as "fundamentally unfair".
From BBC • Jun. 9, 2026
Did poor data on overtime pay before the passage of the tax law lead to incorrect expectations?
From MarketWatch • Jun. 4, 2026
Taylor is correct that heteropessimism isn’t just for women but incorrect in citing professional misogynists like Andrew Tate and Nick Fuentes as practitioners.
From Salon • Jun. 3, 2026
“You know how you cross out the incorrect letter and write the correct one above it? Have those corrected letters ever spelled out words?”
From "Book Scavenger" by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman
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.
