What does misremember mean?
Misremember means to recall something incorrectly. The word can describe a false recollection of an event or detail, as in remembering the wrong date, or mistaking one person, place, or experience for another. Unlike a plain error, misremembering specifically attributes the mistake to memory: the remembered version seems vivid or plausible but is inaccurate. The term is more formal than “get it wrong” and less neutral than “confuse,” because it emphasizes the involvement of recollection and the past. It can also suggest that a mistaken impression persists, especially when describing how someone remembers a relationship, a conversation, or a sequence of events. Although comparatively uncommon in everyday speech, misremember is useful when discussing testimony, nostalgia, unreliable memory, and the difference between what happened and what someone believes happened.
verbTo remember something incorrectly or in a distorted or mistaken way. It can also mean to mistake one thing for another.
- To recall a past event, fact, or detail incorrectly.
- To mistake one person, place, event, or thing for another.
- To retain a mistaken impression or version of something.
"I misremember the route and take a wrong turn."
"He misremembered the appointment and arrived a day early."
"I misremembered the street where we first met."
Sometimes the past refuses to disappear; it simply changes the details.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does misremember come from?
Misremember was formed in the early 19th century by combining the prefix mis-, meaning wrongly or incorrectly, with the older verb remember. Remember itself comes through Old French from Latin.rememorari, a compound of re- and memor, “to remember” or “call to mind.” The same Latin root underlies remembrance, reminiscent, and memorial.
Related word forms
How misremember is actually used
The word is formal but readily understood. It often conveys that the error arose from faulty memory rather than deliberate misinformation or a simple misunderstanding.
Easily confused with misremember
To forget means to lose access to a memory or piece of information, whereas to misremember means to recall it incorrectly.