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Definition of "misfeasance" [mis•fea•sance]

  • Improper and unlawful execution of an act that in itself is lawful and proper. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "misfeasance" in a sentence
  • "The army immediately assumed crisis mode and denied any connections between Hasan's religious beliefs and his actions, they summarily dismissed the idea of misfeasance in ignoring warnings of a potential fifth columnist in their midst, and they are now instructing high level officers to sing from the Political correctness hymnbook as General Casey now yammers on about the glories of diversity and that this is the strength of our great republic."
  • "Attorney General Eric Holder on Sunday said he had dispatched Justice Department officials to the Gulf Coast to determine whether there had been any "misfeasance" or "malfeasance" related to the leaking oil rig off the Gulf of Mexico."
  • ""Also, when people come in to start a recall and I show them the legal definitions of 'misfeasance' and 'malfeasance,' that usually stops it right there.""