Miscommunication happens when people misunderstand each other because a message gets confused, garbled, or interpreted differently than intended. The prefix mis- means “wrongly” or “badly,” so miscommunication is communication that goes wrong.

Miscommunication can happen in many ways. Sometimes the speaker isn't clear: imagine giving your friend directions to your house but forgetting to mention which street to turn on. Sometimes the listener misunderstands: you might ask your dad to pick you up “after practice” but he thinks you mean basketball practice when you meant choir practice. Sometimes the message itself gets garbled: you text “Meet at 3:00” but autocorrect changes it to “Meet at 8:00.”

The results can be minor, like showing up to a party on the wrong day, or serious, like a doctor misunderstanding which medication a patient is allergic to. In group projects, miscommunication might mean two people accidentally work on the same task while another task gets forgotten.

Good communicators try to prevent miscommunication by being clear, asking questions when confused, and repeating back important details to make sure they understood correctly. When miscommunication does happen, the solution is usually more communication: talking through what went wrong and clarifying what was actually meant.