误

誤

wù

吴 + 讠

HSK 3.0Level 6

Definitions

wù (noun) mistake; error

wù (verb) to make a mistake; to err

wù (verb) to delay; to neglect

Etymology

Simplified form of 誤. Phonosemantic compound. 言 represents the meaning and 吴 represents the sound.

Semantic: 讠 Phonetic: 吴

About

误 (traditional: 誤) is a phono-semantic compound. The left side, the speech radical 讠 (言 in traditional), indicates a semantic link to communication. The right side, 吴, provides the phonetic component. Originally, the character referred specifically to errors in speech, such as falsehood or deception. Over time, its meaning broadened to encompass general mistakes, misunderstandings, failures, and the act of missing an opportunity or causing a delay through oversight.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

误会了你的意思。

Wùhuì le nǐ de yìsi.

I misunderstood your meaning.

别误了火车的时间。

Bié wù le huǒchē de shíjiān.

Don't miss the train.

我误把盐当成了糖。

Wǒ wù bǎ yán dàng chéng le táng.

I mistakenly used salt instead of sugar.

这次失误导致了严重的后果。

Zhè cì shīwù dǎozhì le yánzhòng de hòuguǒ.

This mistake led to serious consequences.

他的误解造成了不必要的麻烦。

Tā de wùjiě zàochéng le bù bìyào de máfan.

His misunderstanding caused unnecessary trouble.

因天气原因，航班误点了三小时。

Yīn tiānqì yuányīn, hángbān wùdiǎn le sān xiǎoshí.

Due to the weather, the flight was delayed by three hours.

新闻报道应力求准确，以免误导公众。

Xīnwén bàodào yìng lìqiú zhǔnquè, yǐmiǎn wùdǎo gōngzhòng.

News reporting should strive for accuracy to avoid misleading the public.

在战场上，要严格区分军事目标，防止误伤平民。

Zài zhànchǎng shàng, yào yángé qūfēn jūnshì mùbiāo, fángzhǐ wùshāng píngmín.

On the battlefield, we must strictly distinguish military targets to prevent accidentally injuring civilians.

Related Characters

Component: 吴

Component: 讠

误