MSNBC host Chris Matthews offered an on-air apology to Sen. Bernie Sanders Monday for his “bad” analogy comparing the presidential candidate’s Nevada caucus win with Nazi Germany’s defeat of France in 1940.

“As I watched the one-sided results of Saturday’s Democratic caucus in Nevada, I reached for a historical analogy — and used a bad one,” the “Hardball” host said at the start of his show.

Matthews faced swift rebuke for his comments, with many noting Sanders lost family members in the Holocaust.

“Senator Sanders, I’m sorry for comparing anything from that tragic era, in which so many suffered, especially the Jewish people, to an electoral result in which you were the well deserved winner,” Matthews said Monday night.

He also personally congratulated Sanders on his “tremendous” Nevada win, which propelled the presidential candidate to the top of the pack in the Democratic field.

“In the days, and weeks, and months ahead, I will strive to do a better job myself of elevating the political discussion,” said Matthews.