mistakenly
Americanadverb
-
unintentionally or inadvertently; by mistake.
I may have mistakenly interchanged them without realizing it.
-
in a way that is wrongly conceived, held, or done; incorrectly.
Many people mistakenly believe their PhD will help them land a stable, middle-class job even if they can't get an academic job.
Etymology
Origin of mistakenly
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.
Airlines, regulators and aerospace manufacturers have worked to stamp out deadly accidents resulting from overshooting runways, mistakenly flying into terrain or failures in aircraft structures.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
The turning point came in 1983 when a Soviet fighter shot down Korean Air Lines Flight 007 after the passenger jet mistakenly flew into Soviet airspace.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
But Olly - who has dealt with these before when he has mistakenly posted copyrighted material - says they are usually easy to deal with, and "you can easily tell the difference".
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
Oftentimes in cases such as this, it turns out folks mistakenly registered when, for example, getting a driver’s license.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
Auntie had always been careful that Rocky didn’t call Tayo “brother,” and when other people mistakenly called them brothers, she was quick to correct the error.
From "Ceremony:" by Leslie Marmon Silko
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.
