How to Use misunderstanding in a Sentence

misunderstanding

noun
  • We had our little misunderstandings in the past but we managed to clear them up long ago.
  • Her comments reflect a misunderstanding of the basic problem.
  • The instructions are carefully written in order to avoid misunderstanding.
  • And if not hate, then at least misunderstanding, or a lack of good will.
    — Gwen Faulkenberry, arkansasonline.com, 12 Dec. 2024
  • Try to look at this as a misunderstanding that caused hurt feelings on both sides.
    — cleveland.com, 20 Aug. 2019
  • The case was closed in what police said may have been sparked by a misunderstanding.
    — Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 21 Dec. 2022
  • Good fortune and good luck save what is played as a misunderstanding.
    — Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 12 Nov. 2020
  • The fight over school food has been rife with misunderstanding and tension.
    — Noemie Bisserbe, WSJ, 14 July 2021
  • There could be a hassle around your funds or a misunderstanding.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 23 Jan. 2020
  • But that idea is a misunderstanding of how the hormone works.
    — Angela Haupt, Time, 24 Apr. 2026
  • This way, error misunderstandings will be a thing of the past.
    — Judith Magyar, Forbes.com, 19 Aug. 2025
  • There was a misunderstanding between the pair about that day.
    — Vincent T. Davis, San Antonio Express-News, 5 July 2021
  • This felt less like a personal quirk and more like a misunderstanding of the room.
    — Ana Gutierrez, Austin American Statesman, 10 Feb. 2026
  • The problem, here, is a misunderstanding of how leagues work.
    — Rory Smith, New York Times, 23 Oct. 2020
  • This is a complete misunderstanding of time-out, which is not about thinking at all.
    — Keith Gessen, The New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2019
  • For the most part, emoji misunderstandings are worth a chuckle or two.
    — Jennifer Jolly, USA TODAY, 21 Feb. 2023
  • All the misunderstanding and virtue-clinging could stand down.
    — Jerry Brewer, New York Times, 3 Feb. 2026
  • This can be as small as picking up the phone to diffuse any kind of tension or misunderstanding.
    — Marieke Flament, Forbes, 15 Aug. 2022
  • Pick up the phone and offer an apology if there has been a misunderstanding that should be cleared up.
    — oregonlive, 28 Feb. 2020
  • This can cause misunderstandings and hinder the team’s progress.
    — Sho Dewan, Forbes.com, 13 June 2025
  • If your emotions get in the way of reason, a misunderstanding will spin out of control.
    — Eugenia Last, The Mercury News, 22 Jan. 2024
  • That case was pending at the time of his death and the ex-girlfriend later called it a misunderstanding.
    — CBS News, 20 Aug. 2019
  • But at least there will be great food and drink to make the misunderstanding more tolerable.
    — Channing King, The Indianapolis Star, 4 May 2021
  • This was a strategic error based on a misunderstanding of risk.
    — Katica Roy, Fortune, 14 Jan. 2026
  • At that point, the misunderstandings of me being weird or nerdy or stuck up or whatever kind of just went away.
    — Angela Andaloro, PEOPLE, 11 June 2026
  • All-out war among the women is the result of what should’ve been a minor misunderstanding.
    — Scott D. Pierce, The Salt Lake Tribune, 6 Feb. 2022
  • The root of Amanda's problem was her misunderstanding about how work gets done at scale.
    — John Rex, Forbes, 19 Oct. 2021
  • There are several common misunderstandings that arise along the way, and some clear truths that can help make sense of it all.
    — Kaitlyn Gomez, USA Today, 15 Jan. 2026
  • Or are the critiques just misunderstandings of what the method is really about?
    — Alex Vance, Parents, 5 May 2025
  • One common misunderstanding is that all fish contain high levels of these fats.
    — Leeann Weintraub, Daily News, 18 Mar. 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'misunderstanding.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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