Synonyms

misemploy

American

[mis-em-ploi] / ˌmɪs ɛmˈplɔɪ /

verb (used with object)

to use for the wrong purpose; use wrongly or improperly; misuse.

Other Word Forms

misemployment noun

Etymology

Origin of misemploy

First recorded in 1600–10; mis- ¹ + employ

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.

Do misemploy, misuse, and pervert apply to persons or things?

From English Synonyms and Antonyms With Notes on the Correct Use of Prepositions by Fernald, James Champlin

But the Scottish Solomon who was on the alert, added another law restraining its cultivation 'to misuse and misemploy the soil of this fruitful Kingdom.'

From Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce by Billings, E. R.

If any modern author had written this, our critics would have guessed he had learned from some of the Quakers to misemploy thee for thou.

From The Grammar of English Grammars by Brown, Goold

Yet, bred in errors, thou dost misemploy That strength heaven gave thee, and its flock destroy.

From The works of John Dryden, now first collected in eighteen volumes. Volume 04 by Scott, Walter, Sir

You will not only misemploy your time for the present, but impede your power for the future.'

From The Adventures of Hugh Trevor by Holcroft, Thomas

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