misbehave

IPA/ˌmɪsbɪˈheɪv/
KK[mˌɪsbəhˈev]IPA/ˌmɪsbɪˈheɪv/

misbehave — verb

  • misbehavepresent simple I / you / we / they
  • misbehaveshe / she / it
  • misbehavedpast simple
  • misbehaving-ing form

1. to act in a rude, disobedient, or otherwise unacceptable way after being told th

1.verbintransitiveB2
Definition

to act in a rude, disobedient, or otherwise unacceptable way after being told the rules or expected to behave properly

Example

Christopher started to misbehave whenever the coach looked away.

misbehave + whenever-clause for repeated bad behaviour

Meera's dog misbehaved and knocked over three cups in the kitchen.

animal subject: pet misbehaves and causes trouble

Common collocations
  • misbehave in class
  • misbehave at school
  • misbehave during the trip
  • children misbehave
  • dog misbehaves
Synonyms
  • act up

    more informal; often suggests repeated troublesome behaviour, especially in children

  • be naughty

    milder and mostly used about children

  • disobey

    narrower; focuses on not following an order rather than general bad behaviour

Antonyms
  • behave

    neutral opposite meaning to act properly and follow expected rules

  • obey

    stronger focus on doing what you are told

Grammar Patterns

misbehave

misbehave + adverbial

Usage Note

Usually said of children, pets, students, or groups of people in a place where rules matter. It often suggests that someone in authority is expected to correct the behaviour.

Common Mistakes

The teacher misbehaved the children.
The children misbehaved.' / 'The teacher could not control the children.
misbehave does not take a direct object.
My son behaved bad in class.
My son misbehaved in class.' / 'My son behaved badly in class.
misbehave is the verb for breaking rules; badly is needed after behave.

2. (of a machine, program, or other system) to stop working properly and start doin

2.verbintransitiveB2
Definition

(of a machine, program, or other system) to stop working properly and start doing things the user does not want or expect

Example

Joon's laptop misbehaved and froze during the final presentation.

machine subject: device misbehaves and then fails

The office printer misbehaved again and covered every page with lines.

misbehave again for repeated technical trouble

Common collocations
  • printer misbehaves
  • software misbehaves
  • machine misbehaves again
  • engine misbehaves
  • alarm clock misbehaves
Synonyms
  • malfunction

    more technical and neutral; common in manuals and reports

  • act up

    informal; often used for small repeated faults in machines

  • go wrong

    very general everyday phrase for something failing

Antonyms
  • work properly

    neutral opposite meaning that the machine functions as expected

  • run smoothly

    emphasises steady operation without faults or interruptions

Grammar Patterns

machine/system + misbehave

Usage Note

Used jokingly or informally for machines and systems when they act almost like badly behaved people. More technical writing often uses malfunction instead.

Common Mistakes

The printer misbehaved the report.
The printer misbehaved while printing the report.
misbehave still does not take a direct object in the machine sense.
My computer behaved badly and froze.
My computer misbehaved and froze.' / 'My computer was working badly and froze.
the machine sense is normally expressed with misbehave, not behave badly.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

Misbehave is the broad everyday verb for acting in a way that breaks expected rules or manners. Act up is more informal and often suggests repeated troublesome behaviour, especially from children, though it can also extend to machines in the same playful way as sense 2. Be naughty is milder and is used mostly about children; it often sounds affectionate rather than serious. Disobey is narrower because it focuses on refusing a direct order, while someone can misbehave without being told one specific thing to do. Compare: a child who shouts, runs around, and bothers others is misbehaving; a child who ignores 'sit down now' is disobeying.

misbehave ↗act up ↗be naughtydisobey ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • misbehave in class
  • misbehave at school
  • the printer is misbehaving again
  • the software keeps misbehaving

Etymology

English

Formed in English from the prefix mis- ('wrongly, badly') and behave. The idea is simple: someone or something behaves in the wrong way. The machine sense grew from the human sense by treating a printer, computer, or other device as if it were a naughty person not doing what it should.