get one's wires crossed

Idioms & Phrases

get one's wires crossed

Also, have one's wires crossed. Become or be confused or mistaken about something, as in If you think there's a meeting today, you really have your wires crossed; it's not till next month. This expression transfers a wrongly wired telephone or telegraph connection to human misunderstanding. [Colloquial; early 1900s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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