misconduct
Americannoun
-
improper or wrong behavior.
Numerous accusations of sexual misconduct have blighted his campaign.
Her license was revoked for professional misconduct and poor professional performance.
- Synonyms:
- misstep, misdeed, misbehavior, wrongdoing
-
unlawful behavior by an official in regard to their office, or by a person in the administration of justice, such as a lawyer, witness, or juror; malfeasance.
A complaint was filed against the prosecutor, alleging misconduct in the case.
verb (used with object)
-
misconducts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
misconducted,
past participle, past
-
misconducting
present participle
-
to mismanage.
-
to misbehave (oneself ).
noun
verb
-
to conduct (oneself) in such a way
-
to manage (something) badly
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
misconductsimple
-
misconductssimple
-
have misconductedperfect
-
has misconductedperfect
-
am misconductingprogressive
-
are misconductingprogressive
-
is misconductingprogressive
-
have been misconductingperfect progressive
-
has been misconductingperfect progressive
Past
-
misconductedsimple
-
had misconductedperfect
-
was misconductingprogressive
-
were misconductingprogressive
-
had been misconductingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of misconduct
Explanation
Misconduct is any kind of bad, unethical, or illegal activity. When there's misconduct, someone is doing something wrong. Since conduct is behavior, misconduct is behavior that's not quite right: some kind of shady or criminal conduct. If an accountant cooked the books — lied about finances — that's misconduct. A police officer taking a bribe is guilty of misconduct. Often, misconduct specifically refers to someone who does improper things on behalf of someone else, like the misconduct of a dishonest lawyer.
Vocabulary lists containing misconduct
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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.
See Examples For:
The FA charged Eckert in July with misconduct, and a hearing took place at the end of last month.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
The former Prince Andrew was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office, after information emerged regarding his dealings with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
Supporters say Title IX is vital to campus safety because it ferrets out sexual misconduct that might not be considered a crime but still make it hard for a student to continue studies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
One names the United States and seeks damages under the Federal Tort Claims Act, alleging wrongful death, negligence and other misconduct.
From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026
I was a twenty-eight-year-old lawyer who had worked on police misconduct cases.
From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson
They took four penalties in the first 50-plus minutes of the game and then many more, including three misconducts, in a late scuffle.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 4, 2023
Calgary’s Rasmus Andersson and Dallas’s John Klingberg were given game misconducts for fighting at the buzzer.
From Seattle Times ● May 3, 2022
“However,” she said, “the system that has allowed these misconducts remains.”
From New York Times ● Apr. 29, 2022
"I started skating towards him but I'm about 50 feet away from the guy. I'm getting misconducts for just talking now. Not quite sure what that's about. What are you going to do?"
From Fox News ● Oct. 29, 2021
"It is impossible that any one should be happy who misconducts herself."
From Marion Fay by Anthony Trollope
“She protested that she had not misconducted herself.”
From The Divorce of Catherine of Aragon The Story as Told by the Imperial Ambassadors Resident at the Court of Henry VIII by J.A. Froude
T.—Is probably Tallien, who had misconducted himself in Egypt.
From Napoleon's Letters to Josephine by Henry Foljambe Hall
“Lady Ongar has never misconducted herself—” said Harry.
From The Claverings by Anthony Trollope
He was a blustering, swashbuckling army officer, who could always be brought to account if he misconducted himself, or mixed himself up in shady transactions.
From The Passenger from Calais by Arthur Griffiths
The court considers you have grossly misconducted yourself, and refuses to grant you license to perform.
From Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 1, September 5, 1841 by Various
If that's agreed, detectives will then look for evidence that the incident in question saw the suspect "wilfully" neglecting to perform their duty or wilfully misconducting themselves in some other way.
From BBC ● Feb. 19, 2026
Tilt, 31, pleaded guilty at Birmingham Crown Court to wilfully misconducting himself in public office.
From BBC ● Dec. 14, 2022
Tilt, of Barley Green, Birmingham, admitted wilfully misconducting himself in public office at Birmingham Crown Court on Friday.
From BBC ● Nov. 4, 2022
Thus a lot of people are misconducting themselves like this, and would enjoy programming that makes them feel represented in the media.
From New York Times ● Nov. 29, 2017
A sailor misconducting himself on the voyage, has at least two months' reflection in the jail of Williamstown, commencing immediately upon his arrival.
From Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine — Volume 55, No. 340, February, 1844 by Various
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.
