mis-

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mis-1 OE. mis- (ME. mis(se)-, mes-), = OS. mis-, OHG. missi- (Du. mis-, G. miss-), ON. mis-, Goth. missa- :- Gmc. *missa- (whence *missjan MISS1 vb.), meaning predominantly ‘amiss’, ‘wrong(ly)’, ‘improper(ly)’, which is the only sense recognized in new formations, but in OE. there are also exx. of a negative and of a pejorative intensive use. Cf. next.

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