受惊 (shòu jīng) — to be startled; to get a fright | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

受惊 means 'to be startled / to get a fright' as a sudden involuntary reaction (a sound, a scare). Unlike 吃惊 (to be mentally shocked/surprised by news), it focuses on a physical startle.

verb

to be startledto get a fright

Examples

，受惊。
Tīng dào nà ge xiāo xi, tā shòu jīng le.
He was startled when he heard that news.
，。
Tā shòu le yì jīng, chà diǎn shuāi dǎo.
He got a start and almost fell.
受惊，。
Bié shòu jīng, nà zhǐ shì fēng shēng.
Don't be startled, it's just the wind.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

受shòureceive

受 means to receive and 惊 means fright, so it means to receive fright.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

爪爪zhuǎhand
舟舟zhōuboat
又又yòuhand

受 possibly combines 爪 and 又 as hands with 舟 as a boat, to show handing something over.

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

忄京惊

Meaning part形符xíngfú

忄Written in full as心xīnheart

Sound part声符shēngfú

京

京jīng惊jīng

Same sound today

惊 is made from 忄 (heart) and 京, which gives the sound.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Emotions & Feelings

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