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# mistaken

«mistaken» in Mova's school dictionary: **Wrong in what you think or believe: «You are mistaken»** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

adjective (mistaken); also the past participle of «mistake» (mistake, mistakes, mistook, mistaken)

### meaning for a pupil

1) Wrong in what you think or believe: «You are mistaken». [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/M/mistaken/#m1)

2) «Mistaken for» means thought to be someone or something else: «He was mistaken for his twin». [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/M/mistaken/#m2)

3) Based on a wrong idea: «a mistaken belief». [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/M/mistaken/#m3)

### sense in the lessons

In stories and polite talk it is a gentle way to say someone is wrong: «I think you're mistaken». In science lessons: «a mistaken idea» or misconception, for example that heavy things always fall faster. Phrases: «mistaken identity», «if I'm not mistaken».

### examples

- I'm sorry, you are mistaken; this is my bag. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/M/mistaken/#x1)
- She was mistaken for her older sister. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/M/mistaken/#x2)
- If I'm not mistaken, the bus leaves at eight. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/M/mistaken/#x3)
- It is a mistaken idea that bats are blind. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/M/mistaken/#x4)
- The police arrested the wrong man in a case of mistaken identity. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/M/mistaken/#x5)
- I had mistaken the date of the party. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/M/mistaken/#x6)
- He was mistaken about the answer. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/M/mistaken/#x7)
- But in this he was mistaken! [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/M/mistaken/#x8)

### note

Verb forms: mistake, mistook, mistaken (irregular, like take, took, taken). «You are mistaken» is more polite than «You are wrong». Adverb: «mistakenly».

### In the corpora

- [Dugongs are sea cows that graze on sea grass, and sailors long ago may have mistaken dugongs and manatees for mermaids.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/174-reef-giants-and-wanderers-whale-sharks-mantas-dugongs-and-sea-turtles/6/)
- [Brightly coloured liquid capsules for washing machines have been mistaken for sweets by small children.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chemistry/25-cleaning-chemicals-safety/13/)
- [They laughed: «Must've been her twin, eh.» Her friend wasn't lying — just mistaken.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/451-the-check-that-settles-it/24/)
- [Sometimes a person isn't lying but mistaken, like someone who saw a lookalike.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/451-the-check-that-settles-it/42/)
- [A plastic bag in the sea can be mistaken for a jellyfish and swallowed by a turtle.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/world/57-environment/5/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «mistaken» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/M/mistaken/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.