American

[rawng, rong] / rɔŋ, rɒŋ /

adjective

not in accordance with what is morally right or good.

a wrong deed.

Synonyms:

crooked, reprehensible, iniquitous, immoral, sinful, wicked, evil, bad
deviating from truth or fact; erroneous.

a wrong answer.

Synonyms:

mistaken, untrue, false, incorrect, inaccurate
not correct in action, judgment, opinion, method, etc., as a person; in error.

You are wrong to blame him.
not proper or usual; not in accordance with requirements or recommended practice.

the wrong way to hold a golf club.
out of order; awry; amiss.

Something is wrong with the machine.
not suitable or appropriate.

He always says the wrong thing.

Synonyms:

unsuitable, improper
(of clothing) that should be worn or kept inward or under.

You're wearing the sweater wrong side out.

noun

wrongs
plural

that which is wrong, or not in accordance with morality, goodness, or truth; evil.

I committed many wrongs.

Synonyms:

vice, sin, wickedness, immorality, misdeed
an injustice.

The wrongs they suffered aged them.
Law.
1. an invasion of another's right, to his damage.
2. a tort.

adverb

in a wrong manner; not rightly; awry; amiss.

You did it wrong again.

verb (used with object)

wrongs,
present (3rd person singular)
wronged,
past participle, past
wronging
present participle

to do wrong to; treat unfairly or unjustly; harm.

Synonyms:

dishonor, defraud, cheat, oppress, abuse, maltreat
to impute evil to (someone) unjustly; malign.

idioms

go wrong,
1. to go amiss; fail.
  
  Everything is going wrong today.
2. to pursue an immoral course; become depraved.
  
  Bad friends caused him to go wrong.
get in wrong, to cause to come into disfavor.

We are forever getting in wrong with the people next door.
in the wrong, to blame; in error.

He knew he was in the wrong but refused to concede the point.

wrong British

/ rɒŋ /

adjective

not correct or truthful

the wrong answer
acting or judging in error

you are wrong to think that
(postpositive) immoral; bad

it is wrong to cheat
deviating from or unacceptable to correct or conventional laws, usage, etc
not intended or wanted

the wrong road
(postpositive) not working properly; amiss

something is wrong with the engine
(of a side, esp of a fabric) intended to face the inside so as not to be seen
informal to come into disfavour with
(of food) to pass into the windpipe instead of the gullet

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adverb

in the wrong direction or manner
1. to turn out other than intended
2. to make a mistake
3. (of a machine, etc) to cease to function properly
4. to go astray morally
1. to fail to understand properly
2. to fail to provide the correct answer to

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

a bad, immoral, or unjust thing or action
law
1. an infringement of another person's rights, rendering the offender liable to a civil action, as for breach of contract or tort
  
  a private wrong
2. a violation of public rights and duties, affecting the community as a whole and actionable at the instance of the Crown
  
  a public wrong
mistaken or guilty

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

to treat unjustly
to discredit, malign, or misrepresent
to seduce or violate

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

wrong More Idioms

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

wrongs

plural

Conjugated Forms

Etymology

Origin of wrong

First recorded before 1100; (adjective) Middle English wrong, wrang, Old English wrang, perhaps from Old Danish wrang; compare Danish vrang “wrong,” Old Norse rangr “awry”; (verb and adverb) Middle English, derivative of the adjective; (noun) Middle English; Old English wrang, derivative of adjective; akin to wring

Explanation

Use the adjective wrong to talk about something that is factually incorrect. You thought your paper was due a week from Friday, but you were wrong. It's due tomorrow. Better start typing! You can use the word wrong to describe something that deviates from your moral principles. You might believe that the death penalty is just wrong, but not everyone agrees with you. The adjective wrong can also describe something that is inappropriate for a certain purpose. It's frustrating to get all the way home from the store before you realize you grabbed the wrong kind of milk — buttermilk instead of two percent.

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

wrong wrongs wronged wronging

Generative AI can synthesize and extrapolate in valuable ways, but it also can produce wrong answers or take on tasks that educators would see as inappropriate or counterproductive — such as writing papers for students.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026

She said she had known something was wrong on the day Islwyn died "because he was never very late for dinner", and said the nature of his death had been "hard to accept".

From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026

Cembalest did get some forecasts wrong, however, and did miss some developments.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 2, 2026

What was so wrong with the youthful Moulton?

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

I enjoy watching it too, but Zara takes it to a whole other level, especially when she thinks the contestants are making the wrong choice.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

In her documentary debut, director Poh Si Teng makes no attempt to explain the rights or wrongs of the conflict itself, focusing instead on the work in Gaza of three American doctors from different backgrounds.

From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026

It’s that today’s audiences have zero stomach for happy endings about horrible wrongs.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026

"We owe it to them to right these wrongs."

From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026

Time will tell whether this proves to be helpful for the vindication of wrongs from years ago and creation of stable relations in years to come.

From Slate ● Jul. 1, 2026

Hardheaded, sensible, a reader of magazines and books, he was proud of his race and indignant about its wrongs.

From "Black Boy" by Richard Wright

They ensured families were given priority to see the man who wronged their loved ones face justice.

From BBC ● Aug. 2, 2026

But I’ve no doubt that, like me, many people found comfort in the story’s resolute belief in humankind’s capacity for grace even after someone has greatly wronged us.

From Salon ● Jul. 8, 2026

What I’ve found is that no one is right, and everyone feels wronged no matter what.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 11, 2026

He’s deeply remorseful about how he wronged family, friends and colleagues.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 9, 2026

I was ashamed that I had wronged Mechtild.

From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein

Examples of alleged wronging by the district include:

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 24, 2023

Finally, she is, as you make clear, specifically wronging you, the person who effectively vouched for her.

From New York Times ● Sep. 8, 2021

He has denied wronging, and the trial is scheduled to start in May.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 25, 2020

He had already admitted to wronging his family, but, Lowell pointed out, that wasn’t what he was on trial for.

From Washington Times ● Jun. 28, 2017

But he knowing their errand told them it was not they who were wronging him.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023