措 cuò
- Strokes
- 11
- Radical
- 扌 — hand
- Made of
- 扌 hand 昔 past, former
- How it's built
- Phono-semantic — one part hints at the meaning, another at the sound
措手不及
cuòshǒubùjí
to be caught off guard; to be unprepared
Characters in this word
手 shǒu
- Strokes
- 4
- Radical
- 手 — hand
- How it's built
- Pictograph — a drawing of the thing
不 bù
- Strokes
- 4
- Radical
- 一 — one
- How it's built
- Ideograph — the meaning is built from its parts
Example phrases
- 暴雨来得太突然，我们都措手不及。 Bàoyǔ lái de tài tūrán, wǒmen dōu cuòshǒubùjí. The rainstorm came so suddenly that we were all caught off guard.
- 对手突然改变了战术，让球队措手不及。 Duìshǒu tūrán gǎibiàn le zhànshù, ràng qiúduì cuòshǒubùjí. The opponent suddenly changed tactics and caught the team off guard.
- 客人提前到了，让我们措手不及。 Kèrén tíqián dào le, ràng wǒmen cuòshǒubùjí. The guests arrived early and caught us unprepared.
Related words
- 措施 cuòshī measure; step
- 不知所措 bùzhīsuǒcuò to be at a loss; not know what to do
- 筹措 chóucuò to raise; to collect funds or materials
- 惊慌失措 jīnghuāngshīcuò to panic and be at a loss
- 举措 jǔcuò measure; action; initiative
- 手 shǒu hand
- 手机 shǒujī mobile phone
- 洗手间 xǐshǒujiān restroom, toilet
- 举手 jǔshǒu to raise a hand
- 手表 shǒubiǎo wristwatch
- 对手 duìshǒu opponent; rival
- 歌手 gēshǒu singer