Misspoke

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To utter words incorrectly or unintentionally convey a false statement during speech ; to make a verbal error or slip in the course of speaking ; to express something inaccurately or mistakenly when talking
2. To communicate inaccurately by using incorrect or unintended words during verbal expression ; to make a mistake in spoken language resulting in erroneous information ; to deliver a statement that does not reflect the speaker’s intended meaning due to a slip of the tongue
3. To incorrectly articulate thoughts or ideas in speech owing to error ; to give a misleading or false impression through unintended word choice ; to convey information verbally with a fault or misstatement that diverges from the intended message

Etymology: "Misspoke" is the past tense of "misspeak," a verb built from the prefix "mis-" (meaning wrongly or amiss) and "speak." Its roots go back to Old English, where "missprecan" meant "to murmur," a sense that has nothing to do with error. Over the Middle English period the word shifted from that low, indistinct muttering toward the idea of saying something wrong, and by the time it appeared as "mysspeken," the meaning of speaking incorrectly had taken hold. The "mis-" element is one of English's most productive prefixes, attached to dozens of verbs such as "misread," "misjudge," and "mistake." What makes "misspeak" distinctive is how it reversed the expected direction: the Old English form described unclear sound, not a flawed statement, and the error sense developed later.

Synonyms: erred, misstated, misarticulated, blundered, misexpressed

Antonyms: spoke correctly, articulated, expressed