Misconstruct

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /ˌmɪskənˈstɹʌkt/

Definitions

1. To develop a misunderstanding that alters the original message
2. To wrongly interpret the meaning or intent behind something
3. To form an incorrect understanding of a communication or concept

Etymology: "Misconstruct" is a plain formation: the prefix "mis-", meaning "wrongly" or "badly," attached to "construct." The prefix comes from Old English "mis-," which itself carries the sense of error or wrongness and is found in many native English words such as "misunderstand" and "mislead." Its pairing with "construct" follows the same pattern, so the verb means to construe or build an interpretation of something incorrectly. "Construct" is the older and more important half of the story. It descends from Latin "constructus," the past participle of "construere," meaning "to pile up" or "to build together," from "com-" (together) and "struere" (to pile or arrange). Its sense of arranging parts into a whole gave English the idea of building meaning out of words, which is what "construe" and "construct" both carry when applied to a sentence or an argument. "Misconstruct" therefore describes a builder who assembles the pieces of a message into the wrong structure, so the final result no longer matches what the speaker meant.

Synonyms: misinterpret, misunderstand, misjudge, mistake, misapprehend

Antonyms: construct, understand, interpret, judge, comprehend