畏惧 (wèi jù) — to fear, to dread (formal/literary) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

畏惧 is a formal, written verb for 'to fear/dread' — far more literary than everyday 怕, and stronger than 恐惧's quality of being 'frightened.' Often used in abstract or high-register contexts.

verb

to fearto dread (formal/literary)

Examples

，畏惧。
Miàn duì wèi zhī, xǔ duō rén huì gǎn dào wèi jù.
When facing the unknown, many people feel fear.
畏惧。
Tā duì fǎ lǜ de wēi yán xīn cún wèi jù.
He has a sense of fear and respect for the majesty of the law.
。
Zhēn zhèng de xué zhě bú wèi jù zhēn lǐ de zhuī qiú.
A true scholar does not fear the pursuit of truth.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

Both 畏 and 惧 mean fear, so the word combines two similar senses into a stronger sense of dread.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

鬼

鬼guǐ畏wèi

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

An early form of 畏 drew a ghost 鬼 holding a stick. Later, 卜 was used as the meaning part and 鬼 as the sound part.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

忄具惧

Meaning part形符xíngfú

忄Written in full as心xīnheart

Sound part声符shēngfú

具

具jù惧jù

Same sound today

In 惧, the left part is 忄, the heart, and the right part 具 gives the sound.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 HSK 2.0 Level 6 Emotions & Feelings

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