misspelling

[ mis-spel-ing ]

/ mɪsˈspɛl ɪŋ /

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noun

the act of spelling incorrectly: Note his misspelling of that word.

an incorrectly spelled word: You have three misspellings in your letter.

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of misspelling

First recorded in 1685–95; mis-¹ + spelling

Words nearby misspelling

Missouri River, missout, miss out on, misspeak, misspell, misspelling, misspend, misspent, misstate, misstep, miss the boat

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use misspelling in a sentence

It might seem trivial, yet this misspelling actually illustrates a key feature of how cultural practices emerge and stabilize.
What Misspellings Reveal About Cultural Evolution - Facts So Romantic|Helena Miton|July 30, 2021|Nautilus
A few months into the pandemic, Bad HIPPA Takes — the misspelling is an intentional nod to how often people who claim to know the law get the acronym wrong — emerged.
Is it a HIPAA violation for your employer to require vaccines?|Sara Morrison|July 30, 2021|Vox
An important element of the plot turns on a misspelling of the word “disappoint,” which means the word appears constantly in the novel, storm clouds always passing through the story to underscore Hongmei’s sense of failure and disorientation.
Geling Yan’s twisty thriller ‘The Secret Talker’ begins with a creepy but alluring text|Mark Athitakis|May 28, 2021|Washington Post
This fixes ads that were rejected for editorial reasons like misspellings.
Google Ads Auto Applied Recommendations: Every setting, explained|Chris Boggs|February 4, 2021|Search Engine Land

For SEOs who may have been attempting to optimize for misspellings, this change, which is expected to roll out by the end of this month, means that your efforts are better spent elsewhere.
What passage indexing and natural language processing mean for the future of SEO|George Nguyen|October 27, 2020|Search Engine Land
The yellow property Marvin Gardens is actually a misspelling of the Marven Gardens.
Fidel Castro Hates Monopoly & 12 More Reasons to Love It|Caroline Linton|February 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
I cannot find any information respecting Bullord, but it is very improbable that this name was merely a misspelling of Ballard.
Prices of Books|Henry B. Wheatley
Except for those changes noted below, misspelling by the authors, inconsistent or archaic usage, has been retained.
Makers of British Botany; a collection of biographies by living botanists|Various
Except for those changes noted below, misspelling by the author, and inconsistent or archaic usage, has been retained.
Handbook of Summer Athletic Sports|Various
Guard against misspelling a word because it bears a superficial resemblance, in sound or appearance, to some other word.
The Century Handbook of Writing|Garland Greever
Vindolandesses, which is merely a phonetic spelling or misspelling of Vindolandenses, gives the correct name of the fort.
Roman Britain in 1914|F. Haverfield

British Dictionary definitions for misspelling

misspelling

/ (ˌmɪsˈspɛlɪŋ) /

noun

a wrong spelling

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

misspelling

Origin of misspelling

Words nearby misspelling

Words related to misspelling

How to use misspelling in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for misspelling