Mislocation

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The act or result of placing something in the wrong position or location
2. An instance where an object or item is found in an unintended or mistaken place
3. The state of having something situated incorrectly or improperly in a particular area

Etymology: "Mislocation" is a plain compound: the prefix "mis-", meaning wrongly or badly, attached to "location". The prefix comes from Old English "mis-", a root shared with German "miss-" and the verb "miss" itself, which carries the sense of going astray or failing to hit a target. "Location" is the older and more basic part, borrowed into English from Latin "locatio", a noun built on "locare", to place, and rooted in "locus", a place. Put together, the word describes the act or result of putting something in the wrong place. Its meaning follows its parts closely, with no surprising shift along the way, so the word works as a transparent coinage, the kind of formation English speakers have long used to create new terms by adding "mis-" to an existing noun or verb.

Synonyms: misplacement, dislocation, misarrangement

Antonyms: location, placement