How to Write 谬 (miù) — Meaning “mistake; error; false”

Picture someone speaking (讠) but their words come out as a messy pile of feathers (the top part of 翏 looks like 羽, feathers). This visual of "feathery, nonsense speech" helps you recall that 谬 means an error or absurd statement.

The right side 翏 is complex: start with the top part 羽 (written as two horizontal strokes, then two dots), then a bottom part that looks like a small 彡 or three strokes. A common mistake is making the left radical 讠 too wide — it should be narrow, while the right side takes up most of the space.

All three share the speech radical 讠 on the left, but their right sides differ: 谬 has 翏 (feathers + something), 谋 has 某 (a certain or some), and 谌 has 甚 (very). Meaningwise, 谬 means error or absurdity, 谋 means to plan or scheme, and 谌 means sincere or trustworthy.

谬 appears mostly in formal or literary contexts, especially in words like 荒谬 (absurd) and 谬论 (false theory or fallacy). It is not common in daily conversation but is used in academic writing or critiques to describe ideas that are clearly wrong or ridiculous.

Common words containing 谬 include: 荒谬 (huāng miù) — Absurd; ridiculous; 谬论 (miù lùn) — fallacy; false theory; 谬误 (miù wù) — error; mistake.