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误解 (wù jiě) — (verb) to misunderstand; (noun) misunderstanding

Definition

误解 focuses on wrongly understanding a person's meaning or intention. Unlike 误会, it usually implies a deeper or more serious misreading, and can refer to a lasting perception rather than a momentary mix-up.

verb
to misunderstand
noun
misunderstanding

Examples

  • 误解。
    Tā wù jiě le wǒ de yì si.
    He misunderstood my meaning.
  • 误解。
    Zhè shì yí gè cháng jiàn de wù jiě.
    This is a common misunderstanding.
  • 误解。
    Qǐng bú wù jiě tā de hǎo yì.
    Please don't misunderstand her good intentions.

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.

误wùmistakenly
解jiěunderstand

误 (mistakenly) combined with 解 (understand) gives the idea of understanding something wrongly.

Characters in this word

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 誤; 误 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánspeech
Sound part声符shēngfú
吳
吳wú誤wù
Same sound today

The traditional form 誤 uses 言 (speech) for meaning and 吳 for sound, giving the idea of speaking an error; the simplified 误 is a later shorthand.

Open 误 →

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
HSK 3.0 Level 6HSK 2.0 Level 6Thinking & Cognition5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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