Mislearning

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The process whereby an individual accumulates false or misleading information instead of proper knowledge occurs through misunderstanding or misinterpretation
2. An instance of improper learning happens when an individual absorbs incorrect insights rather than the intended correct concepts
3. The act of gaining false or mistaken understanding that leads to wrong knowledge

Etymology: "Mislearning" is built from "mis-" and "learn," and the verb it comes from, "mislearn," has a long pedigree in English. Its ancestors are Old English "mislǣran," meaning to teach or learn wrongly, and the Middle English "misleren," which carried the same sense forward. The prefix "mis-" is the Old English element meaning "wrongly" or "badly," found in many older verbs such as "misdo" and "misspeak." The noun sense, learning wrong facts, is a straightforward extension of that verb rather than a dramatic shift. The word keeps its original idea intact: acquiring something in error, whether through a faulty teacher, a misread book, or a memory that absorbed the wrong detail.

Synonyms: wrong learning, incorrect learning

Antonyms: correct learning, understanding