Meanings
verbmislead (third-person singular simple present misleads, present participle misleading, simple past and past participle misled)
present singular third person misleads · participle present misleading · participle past misled · past misled
- transitiveTo deceptively trick into something wrong.
The preacher elaborated Satan's ways to mislead us into sin
Synonyms: seduce
- broadlytransitiveTo accidentally or intentionally confuse.
nounmislead (countable and uncountable, plural misleads)
plural misleads
- countabletransitiveuncountableA wrong or bad lead; a leading in the wrong direction.
If all the misleads (incorrect alternatives) are illogical, absurd, or in any way unattractive as possible answers, the student has no difficulty in choosing the correct answer.
1951, Improvement of Grading Practices for the Air Training, page 31 - countabletransitiveThat which is deceptive or untruthful (e.g. a falsehood, deception, untruth, or ruse).
The skinny body, a mislead to make people think that he was captured by someone and tortured. Even the loud gunshot was a mislead to make them ask questions to common citizens. His long untidy hair, also a mislead.
2021, Aren Bjorgman, Frozen Ashes
Synonyms & antonyms
verbTo deceive by telling lies or otherwise giving a false impression.
verbTo deceptively trick into something wrong.
Similar
More synonyms by meaning
verblead someone in the wrong direction or give someone wrong directions
Similar
Also see
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Germanic*missalaidijaną“to mislead”
- Old Englishmislǣdan“to mislead”
- Middle Englishmysleden
- Englishmislead
From Middle English mysleden, from Old English mislǣdan (“to mislead”), from Proto-Germanic *missalaidijaną (“to mislead”). By surface analysis, mis- + lead.
More words from Middle English, Old English, Proto-Germanic
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek πλανάω, πλανάω
- πλανάω (planáō)lead in a false direction
- πλανάω (planáō)deceive by lies or other false impression
Arabic أَضَلَّ
- أَضَلَّ (ʔaḍalla)lead in a false direction
Bulgarian заблуждавам, заблуждавам
- заблуждавам (zabluždavam)lead in a false direction
- заблуждавам (zabluždavam)deceive by lies or other false impression
- подвеждам (podveždam)deceptively trick into something wrong
Catalan desencaminar, enganyar
- desencaminarlead in a false direction
- enganyardeceive by lies or other false impression
- enganyardeceptively trick into something wrong
Chinese Mandarin 誤導 /误导, 欺騙 /欺骗
- 誤導 /误导 (wùdǎo)lead in a false direction
- 欺騙 /欺骗 (qīpiàn)deceive by lies or other false impression
- 哄騙 /哄骗 (hǒngpiàn)deceptively trick into something wrong
- 混淆 (hùnxiáo)accidentally or intentionally confuse
- 誤引 /误引wrong or bad lead
- 謊言 /谎言 (huǎngyán)that which is deceptive
Czech svést, klamat
- svéstlead in a false direction
- klamatlead in a false direction
Danish vildlede
- vildledelead in a false direction
Dutch misleiden, misleiden
- misleidenlead in a false direction
- misleidendeceive by lies or other false impression
- bedottendeceive by lies or other false impression
- bedriegendeceive by lies or other false impression
- verleidendeceptively trick into something wrong
- verlokkendeceptively trick into something wrong
Esperanto erarigi
- erarigideceive by lies or other false impression
Finnish johtaa harhaan, harhauttaa
- johtaa harhaanlead in a false direction
- harhauttaalead in a false direction
- vedättäädeceive by lies or other false impression
- johtaa harhaandeceive by lies or other false impression
- harhauttaadeceive by lies or other false impression
- vietellädeceptively trick into something wrong
- viekotelladeceptively trick into something wrong
- johtaa harhaanaccidentally or intentionally confuse
- harhauttaaaccidentally or intentionally confuse
- väärä johtolankawrong or bad lead
- valhethat which is deceptive
French égarer, égarer
- égarerlead in a false direction
- égarerdeceive by lies or other false impression
- mésinformerdeceive by lies or other false impression
- égarerdeceptively trick into something wrong
- induire en erreurdeceptively trick into something wrong
German in die Irre führen, irreführen
- in die Irre führenlead in a false direction
- irreführenlead in a false direction
- in die Irre führendeceive by lies or other false impression
- täuschendeceive by lies or other false impression
- in die Irre führendeceptively trick into something wrong
Hebrew הִטְעָה
- הִטְעָה (hit'á)lead in a false direction
Hindi बहकाना
- बहकाना (bahkānā)lead in a false direction
Hungarian félrevezet, megtéveszt
- félrevezetdeceive by lies or other false impression
- megtévesztdeceive by lies or other false impression
Italian portare sulla cattiva strada, sviare
- portare sulla cattiva stradalead in a false direction
- sviarelead in a false direction
- ingannaredeceive by lies or other false impression
- raggiraredeceive by lies or other false impression
- truffaredeceive by lies or other false impression
- disinformaredeceive by lies or other false impression
Latin decipio
- decipiodeceive by lies or other false impression
Māori tuapeka, whakatuapeka
- tuapekadeceive by lies or other false impression
- whakatuapekadeceive by lies or other false impression
- rūpahudeceive by lies or other false impression
- papahudeceive by lies or other false impression
- whakapōhēhēdeceive by lies or other false impression
Polish wprowadzać w błąd, wprowadzić w błąd
- wprowadzać w błądlead in a false direction
- wprowadzić w błądlead in a false direction
- mylićlead in a false direction
- zmylićlead in a false direction
- wprowadzać w błąddeceive by lies or other false impression
- wprowadzić w błąddeceive by lies or other false impression
Portuguese desencaminhar, enganar
- desencaminharlead in a false direction
- enganardeceive by lies or other false impression
- enganardeceptively trick into something wrong
Russian вводи́ть в заблужде́ние, ввести́ в заблужде́ние
- вводи́ть в заблужде́ние (vvodítʹ v zabluždénije)lead in a false direction
- ввести́ в заблужде́ние (vvestí v zabluždénije)lead in a false direction
- обма́нывать (obmányvatʹ)lead in a false direction
- обману́ть (obmanútʹ)lead in a false direction
- запутывать (zaputyvatʹ)accidentally or intentionally confuse
Spanish desencaminar, despistar
- desencaminarlead in a false direction
- despistarlead in a false direction
- descaminarlead in a false direction
- descarriarlead in a false direction
- propiciar equivocarsedeceptively trick into something wrong
- inducir a errordeceptively trick into something wrong
Swedish vilseleda, vilseleda
- vilseledalead in a false direction
- vilseledadeceive by lies or other false impression
- förledadeceptively trick into something wrong
Turkish ayartmak, saptırmak
- ayartmaklead in a false direction
- saptırmaklead in a false direction
- yanıltmaklead in a false direction
- kandırmakdeceive by lies or other false impression
- aldatmakdeceive by lies or other false impression
- ayartmakdeceptively trick into something wrong
- kandırmakdeceptively trick into something wrong
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with mislead
readneedspeedleadfeedagreedindeedspreadexceedreedproceedsucceedweedReidbeaddeedcreedliedmeadgreedbleedtweedheedplead
All rhymes →Anagrams
Cite this entry
APA
mislead. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mislead
MLA
“mislead.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mislead. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “mislead,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mislead.
Source: mislead on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.