inaccurately

USAGE SUMMARY

'inaccurately' is an appropriate word to use in written English.
You can use it to describe something that is not correct, or unreliable. For example: 'The weather report inaccurately predicted a sunny day, which unfortunately caused many people to be unprepared for the rain.'.

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Encyclopedias

Science

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

58 human-written examples

That included talks with reporters until a comment he made about Woods's chances this week was repeated to Woods a bit inaccurately and caused a minor dustup.

The New York Times - Sports

The scripts also never explore – as a documentary on the subject surely would – the circumstances in which an early witness statement from Jefferies seems to have been leaked inaccurately by the police to the media.

The Guardian - TV & Radio

The wording was deliberately modelled, Snowden says, on the query of US senator Ron Wyden to the director of national intelligence, James Clapper, in March last year – almost three months before the NSA disclosures began – to which Clapper blatantly and inaccurately denied that the US government collected data on millions on Americans.

The Guardian

The largest of these questions is over the fate of Williams, the erstwhile anchor of NBC Nightly News, who was placed on six months' leave last month after revelations that he had inaccurately described a combat experience in Iraq and potentially other incidents too.

The Guardian

A competitive network of London airports can cater for demand now and in the future.Stewart Wingate Chief executive London Gatwick Airport  SIR – Demand exceeds supply when prices inaccurately reflect economic value.

The Economist

In Benoît Jacquot's magnificent new film, which was screened in Venice out of competition, Angela Gheorghiu, Roberto Alagna and Ruggero Raimondi (a blood-curdling Scarpia) mimed to their own voices, sometimes inaccurately and sometimes with closed lips when the aria was telling their thoughts.

The Economist

The Iranians claim that this is entirely in line with what they describe (inaccurately) as their "right to enrich" for civil nuclear purposes under the terms of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty NPTT).America has tacitly admitted that Iran will have to be left with some enrichment capability as the price for a deal that otherwise constrains its nuclear programme.

The Economist

Though the Indians claim (inaccurately) an unblemished record in recent years in preventing the leakage of weapons secrets, their first bomb for that is what it was was knocked together using technologies and materials provided for civilian use.

The Economist

And all of those clouds will be full of applications and services.Correction: An earlier version of this article stated inaccurately that it was the Washington Post that used Amazon Web Services to turn Hillary Clinton's White House schedule into a searchable database.

The Economist

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

2 human-written examples

Such lukewarm backing this time would damage the credibility of the peace process and also of Mr Arzu's administration, which inaccurately—has tended to portray the peace accords as all its own success.Turning paper changes into real ones will be another matter again.

The Economist

Of more than 40 codices mentioned sometimes inaccurately in contemporary sources, 21 have survived; these in turn sometimes contain notebooks originally separate but now bound so that 32 in all have been preserved.

Encyclopedia Britannica

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When employing this word at the start of the sentence, follow this formula: Inaccurately, [main statement]

Common error

Avoid using "inaccurately" without providing specific details about what is incorrect. For example, instead of saying "The article was inaccurately written", specify "The article inaccurately stated the date of the event, which was actually July 15th not July 16th".

Linguistic Context

Inaccurately functions primarily as an adverb, modifying verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs to indicate that an action, description, or measurement is not accurate. Ludwig confirms this usage, providing various examples across different contexts.

Expression frequency: Very common

Frequent in

News & Media

46%

Encyclopedias

20%

Science

18%

Less common in

Formal & Business

8%

Reference

0%

Wiki

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

This guide provides a comprehensive analysis of the word "inaccurately", confirming, thanks to Ludwig, its role as an adverb used to express a deviation from truth or precision. With a neutral to formal tone, it appears most frequently in News & Media, Encyclopedia, and Scientific contexts. While synonyms like "incorrectly" and "erroneously" exist, "inaccurately" emphasizes a lack of precision. Remember to provide specifics when pointing out inaccuracies and to use the term appropriately in various writing contexts. Ludwig showcases that this is suitable across several contexts, but is mainly used for objectivity and accuracy purposes.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

incorrectly

A direct synonym, simply replacing "in-" with "in-" prefix.

erroneously

Similar to "inaccurately", but it emphasizes a mistake or error.

falsely

Implies a deliberate untruth, a stronger degree of deviation from accuracy.

imprecisely

Focuses on the lack of precision rather than outright error.

wrongly

A more general term for something not correct or right.

not correctly

A more descriptive and less formal way of saying the same thing.

with errors

Emphasizes the presence of mistakes in the information.

by mistake

Highlights that the inaccuracy was unintentional.

not quite right

An informal expression indicating a slight deviation from accuracy.

off the mark

An idiomatic expression suggesting that something is not accurate or correct.

FAQs

How can I use "inaccurately" in a sentence?

"Inaccurately" can be used to modify a verb, adjective, or another adverb to indicate something is not correct. For example, "The data was "inaccurately recorded"" or "He "inaccurately described" the event".

What's the difference between "inaccurately" and "incorrectly"?

While both terms indicate something is wrong, "inaccurately" often suggests a lack of precision or detail, whereas "incorrectly" implies a definite error. They are often interchangeable, but context matters.

What are some alternatives to using "inaccurately"?

Depending on the context, you could use alternatives like "erroneously", "falsely", "imprecisely", or "wrongly".

When is it appropriate to use "inaccurately" in writing?

"Inaccurately" is appropriate when you want to point out that a piece of information or statement contains errors or lacks precision. Use it when correcting or clarifying information, or when describing something that deviates from the truth.