mistake

American  

[mi-steyk] / mɪˈsteɪk /

noun

1. an error in action, calculation, opinion, or judgment caused by poor reasoning, carelessness, insufficient knowledge, etc.

   Synonyms:

   oversight, fault, erratum, inaccuracy

2. a misunderstanding or misconception.

   Antonyms:

   understanding

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verb (used with object)

mistook, mistaken, mistaking

1. to regard or identify wrongly as something or someone else.

   I mistook him for the mayor.

2. to understand, interpret, or evaluate wrongly; misunderstand; misinterpret.

   Synonyms:

   err, misjudge, misconceive

verb (used without object)

mistook, mistaken, mistaking

1. to be in error.

idioms

1. and no mistake, for certain; surely.

   He's an honorable person, and no mistake.

mistake British  

/ mɪˈsteɪk /

noun

1. an error or blunder in action, opinion, or judgment

2. a misconception or misunderstanding

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verb

1. (tr) to misunderstand; misinterpret

   she mistook his meaning

2. to take (for), interpret (as), or confuse (with)

   she mistook his direct manner for honesty

3. (tr) to choose badly or incorrectly

   he mistook his path

4. (intr) to make a mistake in action, opinion, judgment, etc

mistake More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing mistake

• by mistake
• make no mistake

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Commonly Confused

See misnomer.

Related Words

Mistake, blunder, error, slip refer to deviations from right, accuracy, correctness, or truth. A mistake, grave or trivial, is caused by bad judgment or a disregard of rule or principle: It was a mistake to argue. A blunder is a careless, stupid, or gross mistake in action or speech, suggesting awkwardness, heedlessness, or ignorance: Through his blunder the message was lost. An error (often interchanged with mistake ) is an unintentional wandering or deviation from accuracy, or right conduct: an error in addition. A slip is usually a minor mistake made through haste or carelessness: a slip of the tongue.

Other Word Forms

• mistaker noun
• mistakingly adverb
• unmistaking adjective
• unmistakingly adverb

Etymology

Origin of mistake

First recorded in 1300–30; Middle English mistaken (verb), from Old Norse mistaka “to take in error.” mis- ¹, take

Explanation

A mistake is an error, a goof, a slip-up. When you make a mistake, you've done something incorrectly. Mistake has a lot of uses, but they all have to do with doing the wrong thing. A mistake in math class will result in the wrong answer, but a mistake with a gun could get someone killed. If you mix up two people, you're mistaking one for the other. When you make a mistake, the best thing to do is admit it and try to make up for it; not apologizing for a mistake is another mistake.

Example Sentences

This could be a simple mistake of accidentally clicking “publish” over “save draft” at a CNN news desk.

From Salon • Apr. 11, 2026

But that’s actually not the biggest mistake you can make with AI at work, according to Aneesh Raman, chief economic-opportunity officer at LinkedIn.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 11, 2026

Also, the market has all but given up on housing-related retailing, and that is a mistake.

From Barron's • Apr. 9, 2026

“It’s the same as our sport: if you do a mistake, you cannot change it,” he said.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026

Sometimes he bit his own finger by mistake and it hurt.

From "All About Sam" by Lois Lowry

Related Words

• aberration
• blunder
• confusion
• fault
• gaffe
• inaccuracy
• lapse
• miscalculation
• misconception
• misstep
• omission
• oversight
• snafu