misstepped
Made wrong move
Misstepped is the past tense of misstep, meaning to step wrongly or make an error in judgment.
The literal sense—placing a foot badly—is less common than the figurative: The politician misstepped when she made light of the scandal.
A misstep can be minor or career-ending depending on context.
Lost footing suddenly
- slippedLost traction momentarily
- falteredLost momentum or confidence
- tumbledFell in disarray
- lurchedMoved with sudden unsteadiness
lost footing · teetered · wobbled · toppled · fell · staggered · skidded · unsteady
Clumsy social error
- faux pasSocial misstep or indiscretion
- bungledPerformed ineptly, failed
- botchedPoorly executed, spoiled
- erredMade a mistake
goofed · slipped up · flubbed · miscalculated · misjudged · fumbled · messed up · made a mistake
Broke a rule
fell from grace · went astray · crossed the line · violated · wronged · compromised · betrayed · faltered
tripped
Lost footing suddenly
lost footing · lurched · teetered · wobbled · toppled · fell · staggered · skidded · unsteady · clumsy
gaffe
Clumsy social error
- faux pasSocial misstep or indiscretion
- bungledPerformed ineptly, failed
- botchedPoorly executed, spoiled
erred · goofed · slipped up · flubbed · miscalculated · misjudged · fumbled · messed up · made a mistake · wrong move
transgressed
Broke a rule
erred · fell from grace · went astray · crossed the line · violated · wronged · compromised · betrayed · faltered · deviated