misincentive

M3I1S1I1N1C3E1N1T1I1V4E1

noun

Something that is meant to be an incentive but has no (or the opposite) effect

OriginEnglish incentive ← Middle English mys- ← Old English mis- →
Scrabble 19
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Meanings

nounmisincentive (plural misincentives)

plural misincentives

  1. Something that is meant to be an incentive but has no (or the opposite) effect

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*mey-?
  2. Proto-Indo-European*meyth₂-
  3. Proto-Germanic*missaz
  4. Proto-Germanic*missa-
  5. Proto-West Germanic*missa-
  6. Old Englishmis-
  7. Middle Englishmys-
  8. Englishmis-
  9. Englishincentive
  10. Englishmisincentive

From mis- + incentive.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

misincentive. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/misincentive

MLA

“misincentive.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/misincentive. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “misincentive,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/misincentive.

Source: misincentive on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.