not in accordance with what is morally right or good: a wrong deed.
2.
deviating from truth or fact; erroneous: a wrong answer.
3.
not correct in action, judgment, opinion, method, etc., as a person; in error: You are wrong to blame him.
4.
not proper or usual; not in accordance with requirements or recommended practice: the wrong way to hold a golf club.
5.
out of order; awry; amiss: Something is wrong with the machine.
6.
not suitable or appropriate: He always says the wrong thing.
7.
(of clothing) that should be worn or kept inward or under: You're wearing the sweater wrong side out.
–noun
8.
that which is wrong, or not in accordance with morality, goodness, or truth; evil: I committed many wrongs.
9.
an injustice: The wrongs they suffered aged them.
10.
Law.
a.
an invasion of another's right, to his damage.
b.
a tort.
–adverb
11.
in a wrong manner; not rightly; awry; amiss: You did it wrong again.
–verb (used with object)
12.
to do wrong to; treat unfairly or unjustly; harm.
13.
to impute evil to (someone) unjustly; malign.
—Idioms
14.
get in wrong, Slang. to cause to come into disfavor: We are forever getting in wrong with the people next door.
15.
go wrong,
a.
to go amiss; fail: Everything is going wrong today.
b.
to pursue an immoral course; become depraved: Bad friends caused him to go wrong.
16.
in the wrong, to blame; in error: He knew he was in the wrong but refused to concede the point.
[Origin: bef. 1100; (adj.) ME wrong, wrang, OE wrang, perh. < ODan wrang; cf. Dan vrang wrong, ON rangr awry; (v. and adv.) ME, deriv. of the adj.; (n.) ME; OE wrang, deriv. of the adj.; akin to wring]
late O.E., "twisted, crooked, wry," from O.N. rangr, earlier *wrangr "crooked, wry, wrong," from P.Gmc. *wrangaz (cf. Dan. vrang "crooked, wrong," M.Du. wranc, Du. wrang "sour, bitter," lit. "that which distorts the mouth"), from PIE *wrengh- "to turn" (see wring). Sense of "not right, bad, immoral, unjust" developed by c.1300. Wrong thus is etymologically a negative of right (from L. rectus, lit. "straight"). L. pravus was lit. "crooked," but most commonly "wrong, bad;" and other words for "crooked" also have meant "wrong" in It. and Slav. Cf. also Fr. tort "wrong, injustice," from L. tortus "twisted." Wrong-headed first recorded 1732. To get up on the wrong side (of the bed) "be in a bad mood" is recorded from 1801.
not correct; not in conformity with fact or truth; "an incorrect calculation"; "the report in the paper is wrong"; "your information is wrong"; "the clock showed the wrong time"; "found themselves on the wrong road"; "based on the wrong assumptions" [syn: incorrect] [ant: correct]
2.
contrary to conscience or morality or law; "it is wrong for the rich to take advantage of the poor"; "cheating is wrong"; "it is wrong to lie" [ant: right]
3.
not appropriate for a purpose or occasion; "said all the wrong things" [syn: improper]
4.
not functioning properly; "something is amiss"; "has gone completely haywire"; "something is wrong with the engine" [syn: amiss]
5.
based on or acting or judging in error; "it is wrong to think that way" [ant: correct]
6.
not in accord with established usage or procedure; "the wrong medicine"; "the wrong way to shuck clams"; "it is incorrect for a policeman to accept gifts"
7.
used of the side of cloth or clothing intended to face inward; "socks worn wrong side out"
8.
badly timed; "an ill-timed intervention"; "you think my intrusion unseasonable"; "an untimely remark"; "it was the wrong moment for a joke" [syn: ill-timed]
9.
characterized by errors; not agreeing with a model or not following established rules; "he submitted a faulty report"; "an incorrect transcription"; the wrong side of the road" [syn: faulty]
adverb
1.
in an inaccurate manner; "he decided to reveal the details only after other sources had reported them incorrectly"; "she guessed wrong" [syn: incorrectly] [ant: aright]
noun
1.
that which is contrary to the principles of justice or law; "he feels that you are in the wrong" [ant: right]
2.
any harm or injury resulting from a violation of a legal right
Pri"vate\ (?; 48), a. [L. privatus apart from the state, peculiar to an individual, private, properly p. p. of privare to bereave, deprive, originally, to separate, fr. privus single, private, perhaps originally, put forward (hence, alone, single) and akin to prae before. See Prior, a., and cf. Deprive, Privy, a.]1. Belonging to, or concerning, an individual person, company, or interest; peculiar to one's self; unconnected with others; personal; one's own; not public; not general; separate; as, a man's private opinion; private property; a private purse; private expenses or interests; a private secretary. 2. Sequestered from company or observation; appropriated to an individual; secret; secluded; lonely; solitary; as, a private room or apartment; private prayer. Reason . . . then retires Into her private cell when nature rests. --Milton. 3. Not invested with, or engaged in, public office or employment; as, a private citizen; private life. --Shak. A private person may arrest a felon. --Blackstone. 4. Not publicly known; not open; secret; as, a private negotiation; a private understanding. 5. Having secret or private knowledge; privy. [Obs.] Private act or statute, a statute exclusively for the settlement of private and personal interests, of which courts do not take judicial notice; -- opposed to a general law, which operates on the whole community . Private nuisance or wrong. See Nuisance. Private soldier. See Private, n., 5. Private way, a right of private passage over another man's ground. --Kent.
Wran"gle\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Wrangled; p. pr. & vb. n. Wrangling.] [OE. wranglen to wrestle. See Wrong, Wring.]1. To argue; to debate; to dispute. [Obs.] 2. To dispute angrily; to quarrel peevishly and noisily; to brawl; to altercate. "In spite of occasional wranglings." --Macaulay. For a score of kingdoms you should wrangle. --Shak. He did not know what it was to wrangle on indifferent points. --Addison.
Wring\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Wrung, Obs. Wringed; p. pr. & vb. n. Wringing.] [OE. wringen, AS. wringan; akin to LG. & D. wringen, OHG. ringan to struggle, G. ringen, Sw. vr["a]nga to distort, Dan. vringle to twist. Cf. Wrangle, Wrench, Wrong.]1. To twist and compress; to turn and strain with violence; to writhe; to squeeze hard; to pinch; as, to wring clothes in washing. "Earnestly wringing Waverley's hand." --Sir W. Scott. "Wring him by the nose." --Shak. [His steed] so sweat that men might him wring. --Chaucer. The king began to find where his shoe did wring him. --Bacon. The priest shall bring it [a dove] unto the altar, and wring off his head. --Lev. i. 15. 2. Hence, to pain; to distress; to torment; to torture. Too much grieved and wrung by an uneasy and strait fortune. --Clarendon. Didst thou taste but half the griefs That wring my soul, thou couldst not talk thus coldly. --Addison. 3. To distort; to pervert; to wrest. How dare men thus wring the Scriptures? --Whitgift. 4. To extract or obtain by twisting and compressing; to squeeze or press (out); hence, to extort; to draw forth by violence, or against resistance or repugnance; -- usually with out or form. Your overkindness doth wring tears from me. --Shak. He rose up early on the morrow, and thrust the fleece together, and wringed the dew out of the fleece. --Judg. vi. 38. 5. To subject to extortion; to afflict, or oppress, in order to enforce compliance. To wring the widow from her 'customed right. --Shak. The merchant adventures have been often wronged and wringed to the quick. --Hayward. 6. (Naut.) To bend or strain out of its position; as, to wring a mast.
Wrong\ (?; 115), a. [OE. wrong, wrang, a. & n., AS. wrang, n.; originally, awry, wrung, fr. wringan to wring; akin to D. wrang bitter, Dan. vrang wrong, Sw. vr[*a]ng, Icel. rangr awry, wrong. See Wring.]1. Twisted; wry; as, a wrong nose. [Obs.] --Wyclif (Lev. xxi. 19). 2. Not according to the laws of good morals, whether divine or human; not suitable to the highest and best end; not morally right; deviating from rectitude or duty; not just or equitable; not true; not legal; as, a wrong practice; wrong ideas; wrong inclinations and desires. 3. Not fit or suitable to an end or object; not appropriate for an intended use; not according to rule; unsuitable; improper; incorrect; as, to hold a book with the wrong end uppermost; to take the wrong way. I have deceived you both; I have directed you to wrong places. --Shak. 4. Not according to truth; not conforming to fact or intent; not right; mistaken; erroneous; as, a wrong statement. 5. Designed to be worn or placed inward; as, the wrong side of a garment or of a piece of cloth. Syn: Injurious; unjust; faulty; detrimental; incorrect; erroneous; unfit; unsuitable.