錯 meaning and stroke order
Error, mistake; incorrect, wrong
How to write 錯, stroke by stroke
16 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 錯
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- mistake
- wrong
- bad
- interlocking
- complex
- to grind
How 錯 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. Gold 釒 that once was 昔 but is lost.
Radical: 釒 (gold), shared by 135 characters on this site.
How to remember 錯
錯 (cuò) puts metal 釒 next to 昔 (xī, former times). Picture gold you had in former times that is now lost, and losing it was a mistake.
錯 is the traditional form, and mainland China writes 错. It works as an adjective meaning wrong and also appears in many common words, such as 不错 (bùcuò, not bad) and 错过 (cuòguò, to miss). Example: 你说错了。(Nǐ shuō cuò le.) You said it wrong.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes confuse 錯 with 借 (jiè, to borrow), since both contain 昔 on the right. 錯 has the metal radical 釒 and 借 has the person radical 亻.
Common words with 錯
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 不錯 | bùcuò | correct; right | HSK 2 |
| 錯誤 | cuòwù | mistaken; false; wrong; error; mistake | HSK 3 |
| 沒錯 | méi cuò | that's right; sure! | HSK 4 |
| 錯過 | cuòguò | to miss (train, opportunity etc) | HSK 6 |
| 過錯 | guòcuò | mistake; fault | HSK 7-9 |
| 認錯 | rèncuò | to admit an error; to acknowledge one's mistake | HSK 7-9 |
| 差錯 | chācuò | mistake; slip-up; fault; error; accident; mishap | HSK 7-9 |
| 錯覺 | cuòjué | misconception; illusion | HSK 7-9 |
| 錯綜複雜 | cuòzōng-fùzá | tangled and complicated (idiom) | HSK 7-9 |
| 錯位 | cuòwèi | to be wrongly positioned; to be dislocated; to be misplaced; (medicine) to be in malpositi | HSK 7-9 |
| 錯別字 | cuòbiézì | Chinese character error (collective term for 錯字|错字[cuo4 zi4] and 別字|别字[bie2 zi4]) | HSK 7-9 |
| 縱橫交錯 | zònghéng-jiāocuò | criss-crossed (idiom) | HSK 7-9 |
| 搞錯 | gǎocuò | mistake; to make a mistake | |
| 弄錯 | nòngcuò | to err; to get sth wrong |
Questions about 錯
How many strokes are in 錯?
錯 is written with 16 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 錯 mean?
錯 (cuò) means error, mistake; incorrect, wrong. A common word with it is 不错 (bùcuò), meaning "correct; right".
How do you pronounce 錯?
錯 is pronounced cuò, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 錯?
The radical of 錯 is 釒, which carries the idea of "gold". Dictionaries list 錯 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 錯?
錯 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 错, used in mainland China and Singapore.
Does 不错 mean correct or not bad?
It can mean both. In daily speech 不错 (bùcuò) usually means pretty good or not bad, as in 这个菜不错 (zhège cài bùcuò, this dish is pretty good). It can also mean correct, but 没错 (méi cuò) is more common for saying that's right.
How do I use 错 after a verb?
Put 错 right after a verb to show the action was done wrongly, for example 写错 (xiě cuò, write wrongly), 走错 (zǒu cuò, go the wrong way), or 打错了 (dǎ cuò le, dialed the wrong number).