misquote

Everyday

1. To repeat someone's words wrongly, either by mistake or on purpose to change their meaning. tree →
2. (noun) A wrong quotation. tree →

In the lessons

In English and history lessons, famous lines are often misquoted: «Elementary, my dear Watson» never appears exactly in the original Sherlock Holmes books; «Beam me up, Scotty» was never said exactly in Star Trek. In news and media literacy lessons, misquoting can spread false information, so check the original source. Phrases: «be misquoted», «a famous misquote».

Examples

• The newspaper misquoted the head teacher. tree →
• «Play it again, Sam» is a famous misquote from the film «Casablanca». tree →
• Always check the original before you quote, so you don't misquote. tree →
• The politician said he had been misquoted. tree →
• She misquoted the poem, mixing up two lines. tree →
• Misquoting someone can change what they meant. tree →
• «Elementary, my dear Watson» is a misquote of the Holmes books. tree →
• The film poster misquoted a review to make it sound better. tree →

Note

Regular verb: misquoted. The noun is «misquote» or «misquotation». Related: quote, quotation, quotation marks. In history, misquotes can stick for centuries. Not a maths word.