a·miss
Audio Help [uh-mis] Pronunciation Key
Audio Help [uh-mis] Pronunciation Key –adverb
–adjective (usually used predicatively)
—Idiom
| 1. | out of the right or proper course, order, or condition; improperly; wrongly; astray: Did I speak amiss? |
| 2. | improper; wrong; faulty: I think something is amiss in your calculations. |
| 3. | take amiss, to be offended at or resentful of (something not meant to cause offense or resentment); misunderstand: I couldn't think of a way to present my view so that no one would take it amiss. |
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
amiss
To learn more about amiss visit Britannica.com
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| a·miss
Audio Help (ə-mĭs') Pronunciation Key
adj.
adv. In an improper, defective, unfortunate, or mistaken way. [Middle English amis, probably from Old Norse ā mis, so as to miss : ā, on; see an- in Indo-European roots + mis, act of missing; see mei-1 in Indo-European roots.] Synonyms: These adverbs mean not in the right or expected way: spoke amiss; straying far afield; afraid the letter would go astray; thinking awry; plans that went wrong. |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
amiss
c.1250, amis "off the mark," also "out of order," from a "in, on" + missen "fail to hit." To take (something) amiss was originally (c.1380) "to miss the meaning of" (see mistake). Now it means "to misinterpret in a bad sense."
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| amiss | |
adjective | |
| 1. | not functioning properly; "something is amiss"; "has gone completely haywire"; "something is wrong with the engine" |
adverb | |
| 1. | away from the correct or expected course; "something has gone awry in our plans"; "something went badly amiss in the preparations" [syn: awry] |
| 2. | in an improper or mistaken or unfortunate manner; "if you think him guilty you judge amiss"; "he spoke amiss"; "no one took it amiss when she spoke frankly" |
| 3. | in an imperfect or faulty way; "The lobe was imperfectly developed"; "Miss Bennet would not play at all amiss if she practiced more"- Jane Austen [syn: imperfectly] [ant: perfectly] |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
amiss [əˈmis] adjective
wrong
Example: Their plans went amiss.
Example: Their plans went amiss.
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| Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary, © 2000-2006 K Dictionaries Ltd. |
Amiss
A*miss"\, adv. [Pref. a- + miss.] Astray; faultily; improperly; wrongly; ill. What error drives our eyes and ears amiss? --Shak. Ye ask and receive not, because ye ask amiss. --James iv. 3. To take (an act, thing) amiss, to impute a wrong motive to (an act or thing); to take offense at; to take unkindly; as, you must not take these questions amiss.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Amiss
A*miss"\ ([.a]*m[i^]s"), a. Wrong; faulty; out of order; improper; as, it may not be amiss to ask advice. Note: [Used only in the predicate.] --Dryden. His wisdom and virtue can not always rectify that which is amiss in himself or his circumstances. --Wollaston.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Amiss
A*miss"\, n. A fault, wrong, or mistake. [Obs.] Each toy seems prologue to some great amiss. --Shak.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
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