verb
- to interpret or understand something wrongly
Usage: formal
Examples
- Don’t misconstrue my silence as agreement with your proposal.
- The media tends to misconstrue politicians’ statements during election season.
- She worried that her boss might misconstrue her request for time off.
- It’s easy to misconstrue someone’s tone in a text message.
- The jury was warned not to misconstrue the defendant’s refusal to testify.
- Critics often misconstrue the artist’s abstract paintings as meaningless.
- He didn’t want his friends to misconstrue his absence from the party.