What does misname mean?
Misname means to give someone or something the wrong name. It is especially common in reference to species, geographical features, products, artworks, and other subjects that are assigned identifying names. For example, a writer might say that a plant has been misnamed in older field guides or that a mountain acquired an incorrect name through a cartographic error. The word often suggests that the mistake has become established or has been repeated, rather than that someone simply said the wrong name on one occasion. Misname is also related to the noun misnomer, which means an incorrect name or designation and is especially common in discussions of language, classification, and terminology. In ordinary usage, the verb is formal but clear and versatile, with the passive construction “is often misnamed” particularly useful for identifying errors that have persisted.
verbTo give an incorrect or unsuitable name to someone or something. In modern usage, it most often means to call something by the wrong name.
- To give an incorrect or unsuitable name to someone or something.
"The mountain had long been misnamed by cartographers."
"The plant is often misnamed as a species of wild garlic."
"Several famous peaks have been misnamed because of errors in early maps."
Misname is the verb behind misnomer: one action labels something incorrectly, while the resulting wrong name is the misnomer.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does misname come from?
Misname was formed in English by combining the prefix mis-, meaning wrongly or incorrectly, with name. The verb is recorded from the early modern period, with the meaning of calling something by an incorrect name. Related forms such as misnomer were also shaped through Latin nomenclature, in which nomen means name, and the same root appears in words such as nominal and nominate.
Related word forms
How misname is actually used
Misname is a relatively formal transitive verb, commonly used with names, places, species, products, and other things that can be designated. It can also be used passively, as in “The species has been misnamed,” and often implies that the incorrect name is widely established rather than merely an occasional mistake.
Easily confused with misname
Misname is a verb meaning to give something the wrong name, whereas a misnomer is the incorrect name or designation itself.