竟敢 (jìng gǎn) — to actually dare to, to have the audacity to (often implying surprise or reproach)

Definition

竟敢 means 'actually dare to' — the 竟 adds surprise or reproach at the audacity, unlike plain 敢 which is just neutral 'dare'. Use it when you're shocked or indignant that someone had the nerve to do something.

verb
to actually dare toto have the audacity to (often implying surprise or reproach)

Examples

  • 竟敢？
    Nǐ jìng gǎn bù tīng huà?
    You actually dare to disobey?
  • 竟敢。
    Tā jìng gǎn zài lǎo bǎn miàn qián fā pí qi.
    He actually dared to lose his temper in front of the boss.
  • ，竟敢？
    Zhè me wēi xiǎn de shì, nǐ zěn me jìng gǎn qù zuò?
    With something so dangerous, how could you dare to do it?

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

竟jìngunexpectedly
敢gǎndare

“竟” (unexpectedly) adds surprise to “敢” (dare), giving the sense of daring.

Characters in this word

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

The origin is uncertain, but one old reading sees 竟 as 音 (sound) with 儿 (a person), meaning a person has spoken.

Open 竟 →

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

The old form showed a hand using a tool to hunt a wild boar. Later the tool was dropped and another mark was added, and the shape changed into 敢.

Open 敢 →

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