Definition

1. Verb:
   • To deliver to the wrong address: The act of taking a letter, package, or other item to an incorrect location or recipient.

Usage

• This verb is used to describe an error made during the delivery process of mail or goods.
• It is typically used in the passive voice or with a direct object (what was delivered incorrectly).
• The word focuses specifically on the delivery action itself being erroneous.

Examples

• Verb:
  • The post office confirmed they misdelivered my package to a neighbor.
  • Important documents were misdelivered, causing a significant delay.
  • Please check with your neighbors; the courier may have misdelivered it.

Advanced Usage

• "to be misdelivered": The common passive form describing the state of an item.
  • My letter was misdelivered to the wrong apartment building.
• "misdelivery" (noun): The act or an instance of delivering incorrectly.
  • The company apologized for the misdelivery of the order.

Variants and Related Words

• Misdelivery (n): The act or an instance of incorrect delivery.
  • The misdelivery was due to a clerical error in the address.
• Undeliverable (adj): Describes an item that cannot be delivered at all, often for reasons like an incorrect or incomplete address. (Note: This is a different, though related, concept focusing on failure rather than erroneous action.)

Synonyms

• Misaddress: To address an item to the wrong place or person (this error happens before delivery).
• Misroute: To send something along the wrong path or channel.

Notes on Meaning

• Misdeliver specifically implies the delivery agent performed the final act of handing over or leaving the item at the wrong location. The fault lies with the delivery action.
• It is distinct from misaddress, which implies the error was in the written address before the delivery was attempted.
• It is also distinct from general terms like lose or misplace, which do not specify the delivery phase as the point of error.

Verb

1. deliver to the wrong address