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出错 (chū cuò) — to make a mistake, to err

Definition

出错 is a casual, spoken 'to make a mistake' — neutral in tone, broader in scope than 犯错误 (more formal/written, often for moral or rule-breaking errors), and lighter than 失误 (a concrete, often costly slip).

verb
to make a mistaketo err

Examples

  • ，出错。
    Xiě bào gào de shí hou yào xiǎo xīn, bié chū cuò.
    Be careful when writing the report; don't make mistakes.
  • 。
    Tā cóng lái méi chū guò yí cì cuò.
    He has never made a single mistake.
  • 出错，。
    Zhè ge chéng xù róng yì chū cuò, xū yào duō cè shì.
    This program is prone to errors; it needs more testing.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

出chūproduce
错cuòmistake

出 (produce) brings forth 错 (mistake), meaning to make a mistake.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

出 combines 止 (foot) and 凵 (cave) to show a foot stepping out of a cave.

Open 出 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 錯; 错 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
金金jīnmetal
Sound part声符shēngfú
昔
昔xī錯cuò
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 錯 pairs 金 (metal) with 昔 as a sound part; the simplified 错 is a later abbreviation.

Open 错 →
Appears in
Success & Failure

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