mistake

 mistake

I.   noun

I. mis‧take1 S2 W2 /məˈsteɪk, mɪˈsteɪk/ noun
  [Word Family: adverb: unmistakably, mistakenly; adjective: mistaken, unmistakable; verb: mistake; noun: mistake]
 1. [countable] something that has been done in the wrong way, or an opinion or statement that is incorrect ⇨ error
  mistake in
   • We may have made a mistake in our calculations.
   • The most common mistake is to plant them too deep.
 2. [countable] something you do that is not sensible or has a bad result:
   • Buying the house seemed a great idea at the time, but now I can see it was a terrible mistake.
   • Marrying him was the biggest mistake she ever made.
  make the mistake of doing something
   • I stupidly made the mistake of giving them my phone number.
 3. by mistake if you do something by mistake, you do it without intending to SYN accidentally OPP deliberately, on purpose:
   • Someone must have left the door open by mistake.
   • I’m sorry, this letter is addressed to you – I opened it by mistake.
 4. in mistake for somebody/something as a result of a mistake in which someone or something is wrongly thought to be someone or something else:
   • The boy was shot dead in mistake for a burglar.
 5. we all make mistakes spoken used to tell someone not to be worried because they have made a mistake
 6. make no mistake (about it) spoken used to emphasize that what you are saying is true, especially when you are warning about something serious or dangerous:
   • Make no mistake, this is the most serious threat our industry has ever seen.
 7. and no mistake British English spoken informal used to emphasize the description you have just given:
   • Miles was a heartbreaker, and no mistake!
     • • •

COLLOCATIONS(for Meaning 1)■ verbs

   ▪ make a mistake • The lab must have made a mistake – this can’t be right.
   ▪ correct a mistake • Luckily I was able to correct the mistake before my boss saw it.
   ▪ realize your mistake • As soon as he realized his mistake he turned in the right direction.
   ▪ admit your mistake • It is better to admit your mistake and apologize.
   ▪ mistakes happen • We’re very careful, but mistakes can happen.

■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + mistake

   ▪ a common mistake • A common mistake is to imagine that dogs think like humans.
   ▪ a little/minor mistake • The essay was full of little mistakes.
   ▪ a serious/grave mistake • There was a serious mistake in the instructions.
   ▪ an honest mistake (=a mistake, and not a deliberate action) • Thomas admitted he had broken the law, but said that it had been an honest mistake.
   ▪ a silly/stupid mistake • You need to be able to laugh at your own silly mistakes.
   ▪ an easy mistake (to make) • She looks like her sister, so it’s an easy mistake to make.
   ▪ a spelling mistake • She spotted two spelling mistakes in the article.

■ phrases

   ▪ be full of mistakes • The article was full of mistakes.
   ▪ it is a mistake to think/assume etc something • It would be a mistake to assume that all snakes are dangerous.
   ▪ there must be some mistake (=used when you think someone has made a mistake) • There must be some mistake. I definitely booked a room for tonight.
   ▪ be full of mistakes (=have a lot of mistakes) • The report was full of mistakes.
   ▪ be all a mistake (=used to say that a situation happened because of a mistake) • He couldn’t bring himself to tell her it was all a mistake.

■ COMMON ERRORS

    ► Do not say 'do a mistake'. Say make a mistake.
     • • •

COLLOCATIONS(for Meaning 2)■ verbs

   ▪ make a mistake • I just want to prevent you from making a terrible mistake.
   ▪ learn from your mistakes • I’m sure he will learn from his mistakes.
   ▪ repeat a mistake • We certainly do not want to repeat the mistakes of the past.

■ adjectives

   ▪ a big/great mistake • Buying this car was a big mistake.
   ▪ a bad/terrible/dreadful etc mistake • It would be a terrible mistake to marry him.
   ▪ a serious/grave mistake • The decision to take the money was a serious mistake.
   ▪ a fatal mistake (=a very bad mistake, often one that ends something) • His fatal mistake was to underestimate his opponent.
   ▪ a costly mistake (=that costs you money or has a bad result) • Hiring him turned out to be a costly mistake.

■ phrases

   ▪ it is a mistake to do something • It is a mistake to try to see everything in the museum in one day.
   ▪ make the mistake of doing something • He made the mistake of revealing his true intentions.
   ▪ make the same mistake again/twice • We won’t make the same mistake again.
     • • •

THESAURUS

   ▪ mistake something incorrect that you accidentally do, say, or write: • a spelling mistake | • I made a mistake – it should say £230, not £320.
   ▪ error formal a mistake: • an error in the report | • grammatical errors | • He had made a serious error on his tax form.
   ▪ misprint a small mistake in something that is printed: • There was a misprint in the article, and instead of ‘pleasant’ it said ‘pheasant’.
   ▪ typo informal a mistake in something that has been typed or printed: • I spotted a couple of typos in the letter.
   ▪ inaccuracy formal a piece of information that is not completely correct: • The report contained several inaccuracies.
   ▪ mix-up a careless mistake in which one name, time, address etc has been confused with another, so that the details of something are wrong: • There was a mix-up over the train times and I missed my train.
   ▪ slip-up a careless mistake when you are doing something: • The other team took advantage of the goalie’s slip-up.
   ▪ oversight a mistake in which you forget something or do not notice something: • Through some oversight, the brochures were not ready by the right date.
   ▪ a slip of the tongue a mistake in which you accidentally say a similar sounding word: • When I said Thursday, I meant Tuesday. It was a slip of the tongue.
   ▪ faux pas /ˌfəʊ ˈpɑː, ˈfəʊ pɑː $ ˌfoʊ ˈpɑː/ formal an embarrassing mistake in a social situation, when you do or say something that you shouldn’t: • Harris, trying to be funny, addressed the waiter as ‘boy’. A deathly silence followed this faux pas.

■ a stupid mistake

   ▪ blunder a stupid mistake caused by not thinking carefully enough about what you are saying or doing, which could have serious results: • In a serious blunder by the hospital, two babies were sent home with the wrong parents.
   ▪ gaffe /ɡæf/ an embarrassing and stupid mistake made in a social situation or in public: • a serious gaffe in her speech about immigration
   ▪ howler British English a very bad mistake, especially one that shows you do not know something, and that often makes other people laugh: • Photographers should be careful of making classic howlers, such as having a tree grow out of your subject’s head.
   ▪ cock-up British English informal a silly mistake when you are doing something – a very informal use: • They made a cock-up with the bill. | • The government is anxious to avoid any more cock-ups.