Translation guide
Describes the act of hearing something incorrectly. In Japanese, this is commonly expressed with verbs meaning 'to mishear' or 'to hear wrong', and the resulting misunderstanding is often clarified with phrases like 'I thought you said...'.
Expressing that you heard something incorrectly, often leading to a misunderstanding.
The most common and neutral verb for 'to mishear'. It implies hearing one thing as another.
すみません、聞き間違えました。
Sorry, I misheard you.
I misheard his name.
Synonym of 聞き間違える, slightly more formal or literary.
電話で日時を聞き違えた。
I misheard the date and time on the phone.
A noun phrase meaning 'to make a mishearing'. Often used when admitting a mistake.
それは私の聞き間違いでした。
That was my mishearing.
Refers to mishearing something as something else, often in a humorous or poetic context. Also used for 'mondegreen' (misheard lyrics).
あの歌の空耳が面白い。
The misheard lyrics of that song are funny.
When you want to confirm or correct a mishearing by saying what you originally thought was said.
Pattern meaning 'I thought you said ~'. Used to clarify a mishearing.
ごめん、「猫」と言ったと思った。
Sorry, I thought you said 'cat'.
田中さんが来るって言ったと思ったんだけど。
I thought you said Tanaka was coming.
Means 'It sounded like ~ to me'. Focuses on the auditory perception rather than the assumption.
今、「待って」と聞こえたけど、違う？
I just heard 'wait', was that wrong?
Describing a mishearing caused by phonetic similarity, often in language learning or noisy environments.
Literally 'to mishear as a similar sound'. Useful for explaining why you misheard.
「橋」と「箸」は似た音だから、聞き間違えやすい。
'Hashi' (bridge) and 'hashi' (chopsticks) sound similar, so they're easy to mishear.
Strategy: ask back to confirm. Not a direct translation of 'mishearing', but a natural response to avoid it.
聞き間違えないように、もう一度聞き返した。
To avoid mishearing, I asked again.
The word 誤聞 (ごぶん) exists but is extremely rare and literary. Stick to 聞き間違える in almost all situations.
In casual speech, って is often used instead of と when quoting what you thought you heard. Example: 「行くって言ったと思った」 (I thought you said you'd go).