To be wrong means to be incorrect or mistaken about something. When you give a wrong answer on a math problem, your calculation didn't match the facts. When you take a wrong turn while walking to a friend's house, you headed in a direction that won't get you where you need to go.

Wrong can also describe actions that violate rules or hurt others. Stealing is wrong because it takes something that belongs to someone else. Lying is wrong because it breaks trust. When something is morally wrong, it goes against principles of fairness and respect that help people live together peacefully.

Sometimes people say “you're wrong” during a disagreement, meaning they believe your opinion or understanding is mistaken. But being wrong isn't the same as being bad. Everyone gets things wrong sometimes: scientists test hypotheses that turn out to be wrong, doctors make diagnoses they later correct, and even experienced teachers occasionally share wrong information by accident.

When you discover you're wrong, you can admit the mistake, correct it, and learn from it. Insisting you're right when evidence proves otherwise, or refusing to apologize when you've done something wrong, can create bigger problems than the original error.