misstrike

English

Alternative forms

• mis-strike

Etymology

mis- +‎ strike

Pronunciation

• (verb) IPA^(key): /mɪsˈstɹaɪk/
• (noun) IPA^(key): /ˈmɪs.stɹaɪk/

Verb

misstrike (third-person singular simple present misstrikes, present participle misstriking, simple past misstruck, past participle misstruck or (uncommon) misstricken)

1. (transitive) To strike badly or incorrectly.
   • 1865, William Cosmo Monkhouse, “Sonnet: Chance and Genius”, in A Dream of Idleness, and Other Poems‎^[1], London: Edward Moxon, page 160:

     To the musician oft a mis-struck note
     Suggests a brighter strain of harmony;

   • 2004, Peter Berkowitz, chapter 6, in Varieties of Conservatism in America‎^[2], Stanford: CA: Hoover Institution Press, page 157:

     […] scrupulous attention had to be paid to the reality of the here and now lest liberalism misstrike the balance between the desire for freedom and the desire for equality […]

Noun

misstrike (plural misstrikes)

A misstrike (this ancient Roman coin was struck off-centre)

1. An instance of striking something badly or incorrectly, a misstroke
   • 1892, W. David Tomlin, “The Pike”, in American Game Fishes‎^[3], Chicago: Rand, McNally, page 379:

     Many anglers use a Salmon-gaff for handling Pike. They are splendid things in a boat where only two men who know how to use them are fishing. In the hands of many ordinary men you lose more fish by mis-strikes than you can catch with them.

   • 2007, Joyce Carol Oates, The Gravedigger’s Daughter‎^[4], New York: Ecco, Part 2, Chapter 11, p. 402:

     Stony-faced Zacharias Jones drummed his fingers on his desk top lost in a trance of invisible notes, chords. […] So vividly did he hear the notes in his head, he always heard a misstrike. When he made a mistake, he was obliged to return to the very beginning of the exercise and start over.

2. (numismatics) A coin or medal with an irregularity, defect or error.

   Synonyms: error, error piece

   • 1974, Brad Mills, chapter 16, in The Official Guide to Coin Collecting‎^[5], New York: House of Collectibles, page 112:

     How much should an odd or unusual coin vary from the ordinary run to merit recognition as a misstrike or genuine accidental variety? […] Although die breaks are not considered by many as true oddities, other collectors are inclined to include them as freaks or errors belonging to the misstrike family.

See also

• brockage
• mule

Anagrams

• smirkiest