misnomer
Meaning
a name or a word that is not appropriate or accurate
Structure
Usage
calling a peanut a "nut" is a misnomer, as it is actually a legume.
"koala bear" is a misnomer because koalas are marsupials, not bears.
the term "lead" in pencils is a historical misnomer, as the writing core is made of graphite.
Etymology
The word 'misnomer' is a direct borrowing from Anglo-Norman French mesnomer, itself a compound of the Old French prefix mes- (meaning "wrongly," from Latin minus) and the verb nommer (meaning "to name," from Latin nōmināre). The Latin root nōmen (name) traces back to the Proto-Indo-European root h₁nómn̥-, which is the source for the word "name" across many Indo-European languages. The logic of the word is perfectly transparent: it literally means "to name wrongly," a concept that has remained stable from its medieval legal use for a mistaken naming in a writ to its modern, more general application for any inaccurate or unsuitable designation.
Analysis
mis- (from Old English, from Proto-Germanic, meaning "wrong" or "badly"; a prefix indicating error). nomen (from Latin nōmen, meaning "name").