Spelling.School · How to spell

How to spell misbehave

Misbehave is spelled M-I-S-B-E-H-A-V-E.

What it means: To act badly or disobey rules.

In a sentence: The teacher reminded us not to misbehave during the field trip. ▶

The part people get wrong

Watch for an unstressed vowel that is hard to hear.

Same family: behavior, misbehavior, well-behaved, badly-behaved, behaving. If you can spell one, the shared part carries to the others.

Where it comes from: “Misbehave” comes from the prefix “mis-,” meaning “wrongly,” plus “behave,” which goes back to Old French and Latin roots about having or holding oneself. The word has been used in English since the 1500s to describe acting in the wrong way.

Try spelling it

You will hear the word and a sentence. Type it and press Enter. Then four more words from the same level, so you know where you stand.

Words like this

scenery · readable · beautician · questionnaire · embarrass · liaison · electrician · conscience

Everyone has words they always get wrong. Spelling.School finds yours, shows you exactly why you miss them, and uses spaced repetition until you spell them right every time. Five minutes a day. Try five words without signing up.