misconception

Everyday

A wrong idea or belief about something, often one that many people share because they misunderstood it. tree →

In the lessons

In science and maths lessons, teachers find and fix misconceptions, for example «heavier things fall faster» (in air without much drag they fall at nearly the same speed), «the Sun goes round the Earth», or «multiplying always makes a number bigger» (not with numbers less than 1, like × 0.5). In everyday life, there are misconceptions about animals, people and history. Phrases: «a common misconception», «clear up a misconception», «it's a misconception that…».

Examples

• It is a common misconception that bats are blind. tree →
• A misconception is that summer happens because Earth is closer to the Sun – it is really because of Earth's tilt. tree →
• The teacher cleared up our misconception about fractions. tree →
• It's a misconception that goldfish only remember for three seconds. tree →
• Many people have misconceptions about wolves. tree →
• «Multiplying always makes bigger» is a maths misconception: 6 × 0.5 = 3. tree →
• We made a poster of science misconceptions. tree →
• Lightning can strike the same place twice – the opposite is a misconception. tree →

Note

Countable: one misconception, two misconceptions. Spelling: mis + conception (one s). Similar: myth, false belief, misunderstanding. In maths, misconceptions include: «the longer decimal is bigger» (0.25 < 0.3), «dividing always makes smaller» (6 ÷ 0.5 = 12).