misconception
Wrongly held idea
A misconception is a mistaken belief or faulty understanding.
Unlike a lie, which involves intent to deceive, a misconception is an honest error—you genuinely think you're right: There's a common misconception that we only use ten percent of our brains.
The word often appears when correcting widely held but inaccurate ideas.
Traditional explanatory tale
- fallacyError in reasoning
- falsehoodDeliberate untrue statement
- untruthA false statement
- old wives' taleUnfounded traditional belief
superstition · urban legend · misinformation · false belief · popular myth · half-truth · folklore · common myth
Wrong action or decision
- misapprehensionIncorrect belief or understanding
- misjudgmentFaulty evaluation of something
- confusionMental disorientation or bewilderment
- inaccuracyLack of precision
mix-up · miscalculation · oversight · miscommunication · slip · blunder · fault · lapse
Fixed oversimplified notion
- prejudicePreformed unfavorable opinion
- assumptionUnverified belief accepted as true
- presumptionBelief held without proof
- generalizationDeriving principles from examples
oversimplification · bias · pigeonholing · hasty generalization · snap judgment · false assumption · jumping to conclusions
Stubbornly held false belief
- fantasyImaginative mental wandering
- chimeraUnrealistic fantasy or hybrid
- figmentImagined thing, unreal
- self-deceptionConvincing yourself of falsehoods
wishful thinking · false hope · pipe dream · mistaken belief · wrong idea · imagining
myth
Traditional explanatory tale
old wives' tale · superstition · urban legend · misinformation · false belief · popular myth · half-truth · folklore · common myth · received wisdom
mistake
Wrong action or decision
- misapprehensionIncorrect belief or understanding
- misjudgmentFaulty evaluation of something
- confusionMental disorientation or bewilderment
inaccuracy · mix-up · miscalculation · oversight · miscommunication · slip · blunder · fault · lapse · incorrectness
stereotype
Fixed oversimplified notion
- prejudicePreformed unfavorable opinion
- assumptionUnverified belief accepted as true
- presumptionBelief held without proof
generalization · oversimplification · bias · pigeonholing · hasty generalization · snap judgment · false assumption · jumping to conclusions
delusion
Stubbornly held false belief
- fantasyImaginative mental wandering
- chimeraUnrealistic fantasy or hybrid
- figmentImagined thing, unreal
self-deception · wishful thinking · false hope · pipe dream · mistaken belief · wrong idea · imagining
- Misconceptionsmyth, fallacy, false belief, mistaken belief, misbelief
- mental statesknowledge, conscious, mood, anxious, memory
- misunderstandingmisinterpret, miscommunication, misconstrue, misread, mix-up
- misunderstandingsmisreading, miscommunication, confusion, incomprehension, mixed signals
- knowledge gapsignorance, gaps, information gap, blind spots, blind spot
- Mistakes & Liesmistakes, lies, errors, error, mistake
misconceptioncomprehension
Mental understanding of meaning
understanding · perception · knowledge · insight · grasp