misunderstanding
n. C / Un. a failure to understand something correctly. This often happens when people have different ideas about what was said or done.
n. a failure to interpret a situation, statement, or intention correctly. Often used as a polite euphemism for a disagreement or a minor argument.
There was a small misunderstanding about the meeting time.
The argument started because of a misunderstanding regarding who was responsible for paying the bill.
Clear communication is essential in international diplomacy to prevent a simple linguistic misunderstanding from escalating into a significant political conflict.
From Middle English mys undirstonding, equivalent to misunderstand + -ing. Compare Dutch misverstand (“misunderstanding”), German Missverständnis (“misunderstanding”), Swedish missförstånd (“misunderstanding”).
Countable when referring to specific instances; uncountable when referring to the general state of failing to understand.
we had a misunderstanding about of the ruleswe had a misunderstanding of the rulesWhen 'misunderstanding' is followed by the source of the confusion, use 'of' or 'about', but do not combine them.