恐吓 (kǒng hè) — to threaten, to menace

Definition

恐吓 is a strong, deliberate 'threat' — intimidating someone to get them to do (or not do) something. Stronger than 威胁 and more hostile than 吓唬, which is often casual or playful.

verb
to threatento menace

Examples

  • 恐吓，。
    Bú yào kǒng hè wǒ, wǒ bú pà nǐ.
    Don't threaten me, I'm not afraid of you.
  • 恐吓。
    Tā yòng dāo kǒng hè nà ge rén.
    He threatened that person with a knife.
  • 恐吓。
    Tā shōu dào le kǒng hè diàn huà.
    He received a threatening phone call.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

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

恐kǒngfrighten
吓xiàscare

恐 (frighten) and 吓 (scare) work together to express threatening or frightening someone.

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
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
𢀜
𢀜𢀜恐kǒng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

恐 is written with 心 (heart). The older form pairs 心 with 𢀜; the modern form can be read as 巩 above 心.

Open 恐 →

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
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
下
下xià吓hè
Same sound today

吓 is built from 口 (mouth) and 下, which gives the sound; the mouth part marks a meaning connected with the mouth.

Open 吓 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Crime & Police5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.