Chinese word

惊醒

Pronunciation

Pinyinjīng xǐng

Meaning

  • verbbe startled awake

Example

外面的喊声把他惊醒了。wài miàn de hǎn shēng bǎ tā jīng xǐng le

The shout outside startled him awake.

Illustration for 惊醒 (be startled awake)

More examples

他从噩梦中惊醒过来，心跳很快。tā cóng è mèng zhōng jīng xǐng guò lái xīn tiào hěn kuài

He woke up from a nightmare with a start, and his heart was beating fast.

Core concept

A surprise cuts through sleep, leaving the sleeper suddenly awake and alert.

Common phrases

  • 惊醒过来jīng xǐng guò lái

    wake up with a start

  • 半夜被惊醒bàn yè bèi jīng xǐng

    be startled awake in the middle of the night

Similar words

叫醒jiào xǐng: Wake a sleeping person by calling out to them.
吵醒cháo xǐng: Wake a sleeping person through noise or a disturbance.
吓醒xià xǐng: Wake from sleep because of intense fear or a frightening shock.
唤醒huàn xǐng: Bring someone back to awareness from sleep or a dazed state through a call or stimulus.

Definition in Chinese

被突如其来的声音或意外刺激从睡眠或打盹中惊动而醒过来。bèi tū rú qí lái de shēng yīn huò yì wài cì jī cóng shuì mián huò dá dǔn zhōng jīng dòng ér xǐng guò lái

Word origin

惊 (jīng, "startle") + 醒 (xǐng, "wake") presents surprise as the trigger that brings someone out of sleep.

Usage tips

  • Chinese can use this verb with the sleeper as its subject or with the sleeper as its object, so English may need either an intransitive or a causative expression.

Other meanings

  • startle awakeverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word