mis- root words — words with the mis- root

The root mis- comes from Germanic missi, meaning wrongly, badly. 80 words in Dendril are built from it, including mislead, misleading, misleads, misled, misunderstand, misunderstanding, misunderstood, misuse, misdirect, misdirected, misfortune, misguide. Dendril shows them on a free interactive word map — no signup, no ads.

Words that use the mis- root

Explore words with mis- — words containing the mis- root and sharing its sense of "wrongly, badly". Examples include mislead, misleading, misleads, misled, misunderstand, misunderstanding, misunderstood, misuse, misdirect, misdirected, misfortune, misguide. Click any word to see its own roots, definition, and related words.

What does mis- mean?

The mis- root means wrongly, badly, from Germanic missi. Recognizing it helps you decode and remember the many English words built on this root.