What does 错 mean in Chinese?

错 (cuò) means "wrong, mistake" in Chinese. The new HSK exam expects you to recognise it at HSK 2.

How do you write 错?

错 is written with 13 strokes, starting from the 钅 (gold) radical and following standard Chinese stroke order (top to bottom, left to right). See the interactive stroke-order tool for the full animation.

What is the radical of 错?

The radical of 错 is 钅 (gold, Kangxi radical #167). Other common HSK characters using the same radical include 钱.

How many strokes does 错 have?

The Chinese character 错 has 13 strokes.

What HSK level is 错?

On the new HSK exam syllabus, 错 is a character to recognise at HSK 2.

错 (cuò): Meaning, Stroke Order, Radical & Examples

错

cuò

wrong, mistake

HSK 2 character 13 strokes Radical: 钅 (gold)

Quick Answer

错 (cuò) means "wrong, mistake" with 13 strokes, radical 钅 (gold), HSK 2 on the new exam.

Full dictionary entry for 错 →Animated stroke-order for 错 →

Pronunciation

cuò

Meaning

Primary: wrong

Other meanings:

mistake

Etymology

Oracle-bone origin

错 is not found in oracle bone script and is a phono-semantic compound. The semantic element 金 (metal) originally pointed to metalwork, specifically inlay, while 昔 (xī) supplies the sound. The earliest concrete meaning was to inlay one metal into another, as in decorated bronze vessels.

Form evolution

The traditional form 錯 pairs 金 with 昔 and is stable from the seal script through clerical and regular script with only minor regularisation of strokes. The simplified form 错 replaces 金 with 钅 on the left but preserves 昔 unchanged. Both forms share the same structure and stroke logic.

How the meaning evolved

From inlay, 错 extended to mean interlaced, crisscrossed, or alternating, as in 交错 (interwoven). From there it took on the sense of out of place or misaligned, which produced the modern core meaning of wrong, mistaken, or error. The colloquial 不错 (not bad, pretty good) is a later polite negation of this sense.

Cultural note

The chengyu 错综复杂 (intricate and tangled) preserves the original weaving and interlacing sense rather than the modern meaning of wrongness. Learners should note that 错 as an adjective means wrong, but 不错 almost always means good rather than literally not wrong.

Mnemonic

Metal from the past — wrong, an error

Decomposition

错=钅radical+昔component

Breaking a character into its components makes it far easier to recall. Each component above links to its own detail page.

Basic info

Pinyin	cuò
Meanings	wrong, mistake
Stroke count	13 strokes
Radical	钅 (#167: gold)
New HSK exam	Recognise at HSK 2
Frequency	#280 most common

Example sentences

这是错的。
Zhè shì cuò de.
This is wrong.
From 错 (HSK 2)
我发现了一个错误。
Wǒ fāxiàn le yí gè cuòwù.
I found an error.
From 错误 (HSK 4)
工作中出现了差错。
Gōngzuò zhōng chūxiàn le chācuò.
An error occurred in the work.
From 差错 (HSK 7-9)

Words containing 错

Word	Pinyin	Meaning	HSK
错	cuò	wrong	HSK 2
错误	cuòwù	error	HSK 4
差错	chācuò	error, mistake	HSK 7-9
错过	cuòguò	to miss (opportunity)	HSK 4
错觉	cuòjué	illusion, misconception	HSK 7-9
错综复杂	cuòzōngfùzá	intricate and complex	HSK 7-9