'misrecall' is formed in English by combining the prefix 'mis-' (from Old English 'mis-', meaning 'wrong' or 'badly') with 'recall' (re- + call; 're-' from Latin meaning 'again', and 'call' from Old/Middle English roots meaning 'to call').

'misrecall' arose in Modern English as a compound of 'mis-' + 'recall', where 'recall' itself developed in Middle English from the prefix 're-' plus the verb 'call'; the compound mirrors many other mis- + verb formations in English.

The components originally meant 'wrongly' (mis-) + 'call back/remember' (recall); the compound's modern, established meaning is 'to remember incorrectly' or 'an incorrect recollection'.