Traditional: 嚇
xià HSK 5

English Meaning

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📚 Example Sentences

别吓我,我很害怕。
Bié xià wǒ, wǒ hěn hàipà.
Don't scare me, I'm very afraid.
他吓唬小孩,真不好。
Tā xiàhu xiǎohái, zhēn bù hǎo.
He intimidates children, that's really bad.
突然的声音吓到我了。
Tūrán de shēngyīn xià dào wǒ le.
The sudden sound frightened me.
别吓我。
Bié xià wǒ.
Don't scare me.
狗吓了他。
Gǒu xià le tā.
The dog scared him.

💡 Memory Tip

Think of 吓 as sounding like 'shah'—imagine someone suddenly saying 'shah!' to frighten you. The character includes 口 (mouth), suggesting something shouted to scare, and 下 (down/under), implying being 'put down' by fear.

📝 Usage Notes

吓 is commonly used in both spoken and written Chinese, in informal and semi-formal contexts. It frequently appears in everyday situations involving fear, warnings, or exaggerated expressions (e.g., '吓死我了' meaning 'I'm scared to death'). It's less formal than synonyms like 恐吓 (kǒnghè), which implies a more serious threat.

📖 Grammar Points

吓 can be used as a transitive verb (e.g., 吓我 'scare me') or in resultative complements like 吓跑 ('scare away') or 吓死 ('scare to death'). It often appears in the 把 structure, as in the example: 把顾客吓跑 ('scare the customers away').

🏯 Cultural Notes

In Chinese culture, expressions with 吓, such as 吓死我了, are often used hyperbolically in casual speech to convey surprise or mild fear, not necessarily literal terror. It reflects a common conversational style to emphasize reactions.

🔄 Similar Words

吓 is similar to 恐吓 (kǒnghè, 'to threaten/intimidate'), but 吓 is more general and casual for scaring, while 恐吓 is more severe and formal, often involving malice. It also differs from 怕 (pà, 'to fear/be afraid'), which describes the feeling of fear rather than the act of causing it.

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