misnomer

From Anglo-Norman mesnomer, noun use of Anglo-Norman and Old French verb mesnomer (“to name incorrectly”), from mes- (“mis-”) + nomer (“to name”) (from Latin nōmināre).

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /mɪsˈnəʊmə/
• (US) IPA^(key): /mɪsˈnoʊmɚ/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -əʊmə(r)

misnomer (plural misnomers)

1. A use of a term that is misleading; a misname.

   Synonym: misname

   Calling it a driveway is a bit of a misnomer, since you don't drive on it, you park on it.

   • 1994, Illinois. Appellate Court, ‎Stephen Davis Porter, Illinois Appellate reports (page 257)

     […] plaintiff's misstyling himself as corporation in initial complaint constituted case of misnomer.

2. A term that is misleading.

   Chinese checkers is a misnomer since the game has nothing to do with China.

3. A term whose sense in common usage conflicts with a technical sense.
4. (proscribed, nonstandard) something asserted not to be true; a myth or mistaken belief

The term misnomer is sometimes used autologically as "something asserted not to be true; a myth or mistaken belief", as in the following example:

It's a misnomer that engineers can't write.

• aptronym

• catachresis

misnomer (third-person singular simple present misnomers, present participle misnomering, simple past and past participle misnomered)

1. (transitive) To use a misleading term; to misname.

• semi-norm, seminorm