MISBEHAVING Synonyms: 154 Similar and Opposite Words

misbehaving 1 of 2

adjective

as in naughty

engaging in or marked by childish misbehavior a new approach for disciplining a chronically misbehaving child

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misbehaving

2 of 2

verb

present participle of misbehave

as in disobeying

to behave badly scolded the children for misbehaving and sent them to bed early

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of misbehaving

Adjective

Why must members of the public be disrespected by unruly, misbehaving, noisy children, who are then defended by adults who should know better? — Judith Martin, Mercury News, 1 Dec. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for misbehaving

Adjective

When Martín is kidnapped by a monster, Cleo ventures into the jungle to rescue him, aided by an elderly witch and a naughty anteater.

— Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 9 July 2026
People would hang from windows, encouraging you to do naughty things, and my thumb has never been sorer from back-and-forth gestures.

— Matthew MacConnell, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026

Definition of naughty

Verb

Santana-Mateo was booked on charges of breach of peace, engaging police in a pursuit, disobeying the direction of officer, reckless driving, failure to obey a stop sign, failure to drive right, failure to obey a traffic control signal and driving the wrong way on a one way.

— Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 17 June 2026
Icarus disobeying his father Daedalus and flying too close to the sun.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 26 May 2026

Definition of disobeying

Adjective

The stories feature the titular George, a mischievous, tailless, almost-always-smiling monkey exploring New York City, and his human companion, the Man in the Yellow Hat.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 Aug. 2026
The extended chords radiated color, but despite the influence of hip-hop and video-game music, the playing felt less mischievous than relentlessly mechanical.

— Rae-Aila Crumble, Pitchfork, 3 Aug. 2026

Definition of mischievous

Adjective

Sensing a disconnect or worse, a feeling of being forgotten, Campbell this summer invited some of the men who wrote those letters to campus.

— Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 14 Aug. 2026
Dry weather periods are expected in Colorado, and wildfires tend to be worse during these times.

— Callie Zanandrie, CBS News, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of bad

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“Misbehaving.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/misbehaving. Accessed 15 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of misbehaving

adjective

verb

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