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曲解 (qū jiě) — to misconstrue; to twist; to distort

Definition

To deliberately twist or distort the meaning of someone's words or a text, implying intent rather than a mistake. Stronger than 误解, which means to misunderstand without ill will.

verb
to misconstrueto twistto distort

Examples

  • 曲解。
    Tā gù yì qū jiě le wǒ de huà.
    He deliberately twisted my words.
  • 曲解。
    Qǐng bú yào qū jiě bié rén de hǎo yì.
    Please don't misconstrue other people's good intentions.
  • 曲解。
    Nǐ de jiě shì wán quán qū jiě le yuán wén de yì si.
    Your explanation completely distorted the meaning of the original text.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

曲qǔtwisted
解jiěinterpret

曲 (twisted) and 解 (interpret) mean to interpret in a distorted way.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

曲 is drawn as a bent object, matching the meaning 'bend'.

Open 曲 →

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

解 shows 刀 (knife) separating 角 (horn) from 牛 (cow), giving the picture of cutting up an ox.

Open 解 →
Appears in
Thinking & Cognition

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