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骇人听闻 (hài rén tīng wén) — shocking, horrifying, appalling (said of news, events, or stories)

Definition

A set phrase meaning 'shocking to hear' — focuses on a story, report, or claim that is horrifying to listen to. Stronger than 震撼 (a single shocking event) and broader than 触目惊心 (which requires the sight itself to horrify).

phrase
shockinghorrifyingappalling (said of news, events, or stories)

Examples

  • 骇人听闻。
    Zhè qǐ hài rén tīng wén de móu shā àn zhèn jīng le quán guó.
    This shocking murder case stunned the whole country.
  • 骇人听闻。
    Tā jiǎng le yí gè hài rén tīng wén de kǒng bù gù shi.
    He told a horrifying scary story.
  • 骇人听闻。
    Zhè xiē hài rén tīng wén de zuì xíng ràng rén wú fǎ xiāng xìn.
    These appalling crimes make people unable to believe them.

Origin

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 駭; 骇 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
馬馬mǎhorse
Sound part声符shēngfú
亥
亥hài駭hài
Same sound today

The traditional form 駭 pairs 馬 (horse) with 亥 as a sound part; 骇 is the simplified form.

Open 骇 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 人 shows a side view of a standing person, with an arm and a leg.

Open 人 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 聽; 听 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 聽 has 耳 (ear) and 口 (mouth), used for listening; the simplified 听 is a later shortened form unrelated to that picture.

Open 听 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 聞; 闻 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
耳耳ěrear
Sound part声符shēngfú
門
門mén聞wén
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 聞, 門 supplies the sound and 耳 is an ear; this explanation is about 聞, not the simplified 闻.

Open 闻 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Emotions & FeelingsIdioms & Set Phrases

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