错误
cuòwù · HSK 3
error
❌ 错 = wrong/mistake + 误 = err/miss; doubles up the 'mistake' meaning
错 alone means wrong or mistaken; 误 means to err or delay by mistake. Stacking them yields a strong noun for 'error' or 'blunder'. Both characters carry the 'mistake' sense, so the compound reads as wrong-wrong = a definite error.
错 — metal radical 钅 + 昔 (xī, former times)
A semantic-phonetic compound: 钅(金) 'metal' gives the meaning, while 昔 supplies the sound. It originally referred to gilding or inlaying metal, then extended to 'interweave, alternate,' and from 'crossed/mixed up' came to mean 'wrong, mistaken.'
误 — speech radical 讠 + 吴 wú (phonetic)
误 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The left side 讠 (speech) hints at meaning—originally tied to mistaken or misleading words—while 吴 supplies the sound. Over time it broadened from verbal errors to any mistake, delay, or harm caused by error.