失手 (shī shǒu) — to accidentally drop or mishandle something; to make an unintentional mistake

Definition

失手 means losing grip or control of something by accident, causing a mistake or accident. Used for unintentional slips during a physical action, not for general errors (which would be 失误).

verb
to accidentally drop or mishandle somethingto make an unintentional mistake
Easily confused

Examples

  • 失手，。
    Tā qiē cài shí yì shī shǒu, gē pò le shǒu zhǐ.
    He accidentally cut his finger while chopping vegetables.
  • 。
    Wǒ cóng méi zài bǐ sài zhōng shī guò shǒu.
    I've never made a mistake in a competition.
  • ，。
    Gōng rén bān bō li shí shī le shǒu, suì le yí dì.
    The worker lost his grip while carrying the glass, and it shattered all over the floor.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

失shīlose
手shǒuhand

失 lose and 手 hand combine to mean losing grip or making a slip.

Characters in this word

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

The shape is explained as a fallen person's footprint surrounded by drops of blood; another reading pairs 手 (hand) and 乙 to show something falling from a hand.

Open 失 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

手 draws a five-fingered human hand: the top line is a bent middle finger, and the horizontal lines show the other four fingers.

Open 手 →

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