报警

• Pinyin: bào jǐng
• Hanzi breakdown: 报 = 扌(hand) + phonetic component; 警 = 敬 (respect) + 言 (speech), meaning alert/warn

Meaning

Report to the police; call the police; trigger an alarm. To notify authorities about a crime or emergency.

Can mean calling the police (打电话报警) or an alarm system being triggered (报警器响了). Used as both a verb phrase and in compound nouns like 报警器 (alarm device).

Examples

1. 发现有人入室盗窃后，她立刻拿起电话报警。 After discovering someone had broken into her home to steal, she immediately picked up the phone to call the police.
2. 这辆车的报警系统非常灵敏，碰一下就会响。 This car's alarm system is very sensitive; touch it and it will go off.
3. 遇到紧急情况，请拨打110报警。 In case of emergency, please dial 110 to call the police.

Usage Guide

Context: emergency, security, everyday

Tone: urgent

Do Say

• 我要报警！(I'm calling the police!)
• 报警器响了。(The alarm went off.)

Don't Say

• 对小事威胁说'我要报警'——可能被认为是反应过度或威胁 (Don't threaten to call the police over minor matters — it may seem like overreaction or a threat)

Origin & History

Compound of 报 (report) + 警 (police/alert), literally meaning to report to authorities or sound an alert.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal