How to Write 诿 (wěi) — Meaning “To shirk; to shift (responsibility)”

Imagine a person saying "I'll commission you" but then quickly walking away—the 讠 (speech) shows talk, and 委 looks like a figure shirking duty. Visualize the speech bubble floating away as the person dodges blame.

Write the left radical 讠 first (dot, horizontal fold, then a hook-like stroke). The right part 委 starts with the top stroke (撇), then the 禾 component (stroke order: left-falling, horizontal, vertical, left-falling, dot). A common mistake is making the left radical too wide or forgetting the final dot inside 委.

诿 (wěi) means to shift blame, while 诓 (kuāng) means to deceive or lie, and 诔 (lěi) means to eulogize or write a funeral address. Visually, 诿 has the component 委 (entrust), 诓 has 匡 (a box shape), and 诔 has 耒 (a plow-like shape).

诿 appears mainly in formal or written contexts, especially in the compound 推诿 (to shirk responsibility). Culturally, Chinese society values accountability, so 诿 often carries a negative tone, criticizing leaders or colleagues who avoid blame. It is rarely used in everyday conversation.

Common words containing 诿 include: 推诿 (tuī wěi) — to shift responsibility / to shirk; 诿过 (wěi guò) — To shift the blame onto others; 诿托 (wěi tuō) — To entrust under a pretext; to make an excuse to delegate.