Misnomer

Key takeaways

Misnomer belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Misnomer to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Misnomer from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

A misnomer is a name that is incorrectly or unsuitably applied. Misnomers often arise because something was named long before its correct nature was known, or because an earlier form of something has been replaced by a later form to which the name no longer suitably applies. A misnomer may also be a word that is used incorrectly or misleadingly. The word "misnomer" does not mean "misunderstanding" or "popular misconception", and a number of misnomers remain in common usage — which is to say that a word being a misnomer does not necessarily make usage of the word incorrect.

Sources of misnomers

An older name being retained after the thing itself has changed (e.g., tin can, mince meat pie, steamroller, tin foil, clothes iron, digital darkroom). This is essentially a metaphorical extension with the name of the older item standing for anything filling the same role. Transference of a well-known product brand name into a genericized trademark (e.g., Xerox for photocopy, Kleenex for tissues, or Jell-O for gelatin dessert). Pars pro toto (i.e., the name of a part being applied to the whole). Holland is often used to refer to the Netherlands, while it is actually only a part of that country. Referring to the suburbs of a metropolis by the name of its biggest city. (e.g., referring to Allen, Texas as "Dallas"). A name based on a similarity in a particular aspect (e.g., "shooting stars" look like falling stars but are actually meteors). A difference between popular and technical meanings of a term. A koala "bear" (see below) superficially looks and acts like a bear, but is quite distinct and unrelated. Fireflies fly like flies, and ladybugs are like bugs. Botanically, peanuts are not nuts. The technical sense is often cited as "correct", but this is a matter of context. Ambiguity. A parkway is generally a road with park-like landscaping, not a place to park. Such a term may confuse those unfamiliar with the language. Association of a thing with a place other than its origin. Panama hats originate from Ecuador, but came to be associated with the building of the Panama Canal. Naming particular to the originator's world view. An unfamiliar name – perhaps foreign – or technical term re-analyzed as something more familiar (see folk etymology). Anachronisms, juxtaposed terms from different time periods, creating chronological inconsistency.

Examples

Older name retained Aluminium foil is sometimes called "tin foil" even when it is made of aluminium, whereas "tin cans" made for the storage of food products are made from steel with a thin tin plating. In both cases, tin was the original metal. The "lead" in pencils is made of graphite and clay, not lead; graphite was once believed to be lead ore. The graphite and clay mix is known as plumbago, meaning "lead ore" in Latin. Blackboards can be black, green, red, blue, or brown. Sticks of chalk are no longer made of chalk, but of gypsum. Telephone numbers are referred to as being "dialed" although rotary phones are now rare. In golf, the clubs referred to as woods were once made of wood but are now usually made of metal. The Pennsylvania Dutch people are German Americans and the Pennsylvania Dutch language is a dialect of German only distinctly related to Dutch. Even though the term "Dutch" in English has narrowed to denote Netherlands origin only, it originally encompassed all Germanic peoples.

The term anachronym refers to this type of misnomer. "Anachronym" should not be confused with anacronym, which refers to words (such as laser, sonar and scuba) with acronymic origin but which are now used syntactically as words in their own right.

Similarity of appearance Head cheese is a meat product. A horned toad is a lizard. A velvet ant is a wasp.

Difference between common and technical meanings Koala "bears" are marsupials not closely related to the bear family, Ursidae. The term "koala" is preferred in their native Australia. Jellyfish and starfish are only very distantly related to fish, being in separate phyla. The gelatinous structure of jellyfish is similar to gelatin dessert. A peanut is not a nut in the botanical sense, but a legume. A coconut is not a botanical nut but a drupe. Fruits that are not botanically considered berries include strawberries, bayberries, raspberries, and blackberries.

Association with place other than that which one may assume The guinea pig (Cavia porcellus) originated in the Andes, not Guinea, and is a rodent unrelated to pigs. French horns originated in Germany, not France. Chinese checkers originated in Germany.

Other Although dry cleaning does not involve water, it does involve the use of liquid solvents. The "funny bone" is not a bone—the phrase refers to the ulnar nerve. Although it has "socialism" in the name, national socialism is not a socialist ideology as it still upholds private property. A quantum leap is properly an instantaneous change that may be large or small. In physics, it is a change of an electron from one energy level to another. In common usage the term is often used to mean a large, abrupt change. "Tennis elbow" (formally lateral epicondylitis) does not necessarily result from playing tennis.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Misnomer

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Misnomer claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Misnomer before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Misnomer ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Misnomer

In research: Misnomer appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Misnomer in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Misnomer is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics English-language idioms, Semantics, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Misnomer outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

How to study Misnomer in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Misnomer means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Misnomer out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Misnomer in simple terms?

A misnomer is a name that is incorrectly or unsuitably applied. Misnomers often arise because something was named long before its correct nature was known, or because an earlier form of something has been replaced by a later form to which the name no longer suitably applies.

Why does Misnomer matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Misnomer?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Misnomer.