as in to disobey
to behave badly
scolded the children for misbehaving and sent them to bed early
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Recent Examples of misbehave
Thankfully, the family lives right next door to Poppa's massive home — giving them somewhere to send their misbehaving kids.
—
Shania Russell, EW.com, 22 Apr. 2025
Zico Kolter has a knack for getting artificial intelligence to misbehave in interesting and important ways.
—Will Knight, Wired News, 9 Apr. 2025
And thanks to the survey, conducted between October 22 and 28, pet parents might give a sigh of relief that their animal isn't the only one that misbehaves.
—John Mac Ghlionn, Newsweek, 14 Jan. 2025
Several educators have also told USA TODAY over the last few years that students misbehave in class more often since the onset of the pandemic.
—Kayla Jimenez, USA TODAY, 19 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for misbehave
Shania Russell, EW.com, 22 Apr. 2025
Zico Kolter has a knack for getting artificial intelligence to misbehave in interesting and important ways.
—Will Knight, Wired News, 9 Apr. 2025
And thanks to the survey, conducted between October 22 and 28, pet parents might give a sigh of relief that their animal isn't the only one that misbehaves.
—John Mac Ghlionn, Newsweek, 14 Jan. 2025
Several educators have also told USA TODAY over the last few years that students misbehave in class more often since the onset of the pandemic.
—Kayla Jimenez, USA TODAY, 19 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for misbehave
Recent Examples of Synonyms for misbehave
Verb
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Summer classes and programs are still underway in South Florida and the county’s school zone cameras are still active, just waiting to mail you a ticket for disobeying the speed zone.—
Cordell Jones
July 6,
Miami Herald,
6 July 2025
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Her word was law and anyone who disobeyed it was punished.—
Carolyn Wells,
Longreads,
27 June 2025
Verb
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The passage of the 13th Amendment roughly six months later was the final legislation ensuring the freedom of all enslaved African Americans in the nation: both those in rebelling Confederate states and those belonging to the Union.—
Mackenzie Thomas,
The Washington Examiner,
16 June 2025
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But rank-and-file Democratic lawmakers rebelled and Newsom abandoned the effort.—
George Skelton,
Mercury News,
3 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Misbehave.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/misbehave. Accessed 20 Jul. 2025.
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