Dead Wrong

Meaning of Idiom ‘Dead Wrong’

To be dead wrong means to be completely wrong. ¹

Examples Of Use

“I thought he was the right choice for the job but I was dead wrong.”

“I know I was dead wrong but I was given incorrect information.

Origin

Used since the late 1800’s.

Here, the word dead is used to mean completely or extremely, a usage that began in the 1600’s. ²,³

More Idioms Starting with D

• Drive Someone Up the Wall
• Drive Into
• Down the Rabbit Hole
• Desk Jockey
• Days Of Yore

More ‘Dead’ Idioms

• Beat a Dead Horse
• Flat Broke
• Dead to Rights, have someone
• Dead Ringer
• Drop Dead

More Wrong Idioms

• Rub Someone the Wrong Way
• Wrong Side of the Tracks, the
• Get Up on the Wrong Side of the Bed, to
• Bark Up the Wrong Tree
• Back the Wrong Horse

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References

1. Spears, Richard A. McGraw-Hill’s American Idioms Dictionary. Boston: McGraw Hill, 2008.
2. McIntosh, Colin. Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Cambridge University Press, 2013.
3. Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.