惊讶

• Pinyin: jīng yà
• Hanzi breakdown: 惊 = startled; 讶 = 讠(speech) + 牙 — surprised, astonished

Meaning

Surprised; astonished. The common word for feeling surprise.

The most common and versatile word for expressing surprise in Chinese. Can be used for both positive and negative surprises. Works as both an adjective and a verb. More neutral than 惊诧 (literary) or 惊喜 (pleasant surprise).

Examples

1. 她惊讶地发现自己的行李已经被送到了酒店。 She was surprised to find that her luggage had already been delivered to the hotel.
2. 让我惊讶的是，他居然会说流利的中文。 What surprised me was that he could actually speak fluent Chinese.
3. 听到这个消息，大家都表现得很惊讶。 Upon hearing this news, everyone looked very surprised.

Usage Guide

Context: everyday speech, reactions, descriptions

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 感到惊讶。(Feel surprised.)
• 令人惊讶的是。(Surprisingly; what's surprising is.)

Don't Say

• 惊讶死了 as exaggeration (While understandable, more natural exaggerations are 太惊讶了 or 吓死我了; 惊讶死了 is less idiomatic)

Origin & History

Composed of 惊 (startled) + 讶 (surprised). Both characters express surprise, creating emphasis.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal