wrong Hear it!

wrong Definition

wrong (rôŋ)

adjective

  1. not in accordance with justice, law, morality, etc.; unlawful, immoral, or improper
  2. not in accordance with an established standard, previous arrangement, given intention, etc. the wrong method, came on the wrong day
  3. not suitable or appropriate the wrong thing to say
    1. contrary to fact, reason, some set standard, etc.; incorrect; inaccurate; false
    2. acting, judging, believing, etc. incorrectly; mistaken
  5. unsatisfactory; in a bad state or condition
  6. not functioning properly; out of order something wrong with her eyes
  7. designating the side, surface, etc. that is not meant to be seen; designating the unfinished, inner, or under side the wrong side of a fabric

Etymology: ME, crooked, twisted, wrong < OE wrang < ON rangr, wrangr, wrong, twisted: for IE base see wring

adverb

in a wrong manner, direction, etc.; so as to be wrong; incorrectly; amiss

noun

  1. that which is not right, or not just, proper, correct, etc.; esp., an unjust or immoral act
  2. Law a violation or invasion of a legal right; injurious act, as a tort

transitive verb

  1. to treat badly or unjustly; do wrong to; injure
  2. to think badly of without real justification
  3. to malign; dishonor
  4. to seduce (a woman)

wrong Related Forms

wrong′er noun wrong′ly adverb wrong′·ness noun

wrong Idioms

get someone in wrong

☆

Informal to bring someone into disfavor

get someone (or something) wrong

Informal to fail to understand someone (or something) properly

go wrong

  1. to turn out badly
  2. to change from good behavior to bad; go astray

in the wrong

not on the side supported by truth, justice, etc.

wrong Synonyms

wrong

modif.

  1. Immoral

    evil, sinful, illegal, wicked, naughty, salacious, base, indecent, risqué, blasphemous, ungodly, amoral, dissolute, dissipated, wanton, profane, sacrilegious, depraved, corrupt, profligate, shady*, low-down*, smutty*. *

    Antonyms righteous*, virtuous*, good. *

  2. Inaccurate

    inexact, erroneous, sophistical, mistaken, in error, incorrect, fallacious, untrue, erring, astray, amiss, ungrounded, spurious, unsubstantial, unsound, erratic, deceiving one self, in the wrong, under an error, beside the mark, laboring under a false impression, out of line, at fault, to no purpose, not right, awry, faulty, mishandled, miscalculated, misfigured, misconstructed, misconstrued, misfashioned, mismade, altered, not precise, perverse, anachronistic, at fault in one's reckoning, wide of the mark, not according to the facts, abounding in error, badly estimated, beyond, the range of probable error, a mile off*, all off*, gummed up*, crazy*.

    Antonyms accurate*, correct*, exact. *

  3. Inappropriate

    unfitted, ill-fitting, disproportionate, out of focus, off balance, misplaced, awkward, gauche, ill-advised, improper, unsuitable, incongruous.

    Antonyms fit*, suitable*, appropriate. *

  4. Referring to a side to be kept from view

    reverse, back, obverse, opposite, inside.

wrong Synonyms

wrong

n.

  1. Injustice

    vice, sin, misdemeanor, crime, immorality, turpitude, indecency, transgression, misdeed, unfairness, imposition, oppression, foul play, prejudice, bias, favor, unlawful practice, villainy, delinquency, misdoing, error, miscarriage, mistake, blunder, offense, faux pas (French), wrongdoing, violation, tort.

    Antonyms right*, justice*, fairness. *

  2. An injury

    hurt, persecution, injustice, malevolence, cruelty, libel, abuse, harm, damage, spite, slander, false report, slight, misusage, outrage, inhumanity, over-presumption, insult, discourtesy, raw deal*, bum steer*, dirt*.

    Antonyms kindness*, good deed, consideration.

wrong Synonyms

wrong

v.

hurt, oppress, defame, persecute, abuse, aggrieve, mistreat, misuse, use, exploit, take advantage of; see also abuse 1.

wrong implies the inflicting of unmerited injury or harm upon another he was wronged by false charges; oppress implies a burdening with harsh, rigorous impositions or the cruel or unjust use of power oppressed by heavy taxation; persecute suggests constant harassment or the relentless infliction of cruelty and suffering the persecuted minorities of Nazi Germany; aggrieve suggests just or legitimate grounds for complaint or resentment for wrongs or injuries done aggrieved by the company's ill-treatment of him; abuse suggests improper or hurtful treatment, as by the use of harsh punishment or insulting or coarse language felt abused by his father's constant haranguing

wrong Law Definition

n

v

  1. A violation of another person’s legal rights; an illegal act.
  2. To violate another person’s rights or to do harm. See also tort.

wrong Usage Examples

Adjective complement with noun phrase

  • prove: We proved the opinion polls wrong by a factor of 50 % .
  • do: Hadrian didn't do anything wrong, David was just that one step ahead.
  • get: Common errors LaTeX gets cross-references wrong Start of line goes awry Why doesn't verbatim work within.. .

Modifies a noun

  • direction: Some stupid person changed them in the wrong direction!
  • turning: I ventured down many blind alleys and took several wrong turnings.
  • side: With both being the wrong side of sixty they must be the eldest rockers in the village!
  • answer: They're just coming up with the wrong answer.
  • impression: Cross breed 20 Oct 06 13:02 In what way have we got the wrong impression of Larks?
  • conclusion: The aim of these notes is to save the user of MGP from jumping to too many wrong conclusions.

Modifying Another Word

  • horribly: Wine all tastes like grape juice gone horribly wrong to me.
  • morally: CNA is not, by itself, morally wrong.

Infinitive complement

  • assume: In the above example, it might be wrong to assume that the potential users were unaware of what you had to offer.
  • suggest: But Thompson said: " The article was wrong to suggest there has been any change.
  • portray: Comrade Mc Shane said comrade Donovan was wrong to portray the result of the election as simply positive.

Used with adjective complement

  • go: Indeed you rarely go wrong with a Lees house.
  • prove: Not surprisingly, and in a terrifying manner, he is proved wrong.
  • do: I don't know what they had done wrong.
  • seem: Of course, Hopkins is there and has been influential on a range of poets; but this seems wrong to me.

Preposition: in

principle: Second, he says that it is wrong in principle for the offer to be linked to contact.

Preposition: with

ethnography: HAMMERSLEY, M. , 1992, What's Wrong with Ethnography?