Chinese word

诧异

Pronunciation

Pinyinchà yì

Meaning

  • adjectivesurprised

Example

看到这个价格，我很诧异。kàn dào zhè ge jià gé wǒ hěn chà yì

I was very surprised when I saw this price.

Illustration for 诧异 (surprised)

More examples

他听完解释后，脸上仍然露出诧异的表情。tā tīng wán jiě shì hòu liǎn shàng réng rán lù chū chà yì de biǎo qíng

After he finished listening to the explanation, he still wore a surprised expression.

Core concept

A sudden break from what seems normal produces surprise with a lingering sense that the situation is hard to understand.

Common phrases

  • 露出诧异的表情lù chū chà yì de biǎo qíng

    display a surprised expression

  • 显得诧异xiǎn de chà yì

    look surprised

  • 满脸诧异mán liǎn chà yì

    look full of surprise

Similar words

惊讶jīng yà: Feeling strong surprise when faced with something unexpected.
吃惊chī jīng: Feeling suddenly surprised and startled by an unexpected event.
惊愕jīng è: Extremely surprised and left stunned by what has happened.
愕然è rán: So surprised that speech briefly fails.

Definition in Chinese

因事物出人意料而感到惊讶，常夹杂疑惑或难以置信的意味。yīn shì wù chū rén yì liào ér gǎn dào jīng yà cháng jiā zá yí huò huò nán yǐ zhì xìn de yì wèi

Word origin

诧异 (chàyì, "surprised") combines 诧 (chà, "astonished") with 异 (yì, "different or strange"), linking surprise to something that seems unusual.

Usage tips

  • 诧异 (chàyì, "surprised") is useful when English surprised sounds too simple because the Chinese word can also signal that the situation seems difficult to believe.

Other meanings

  • astonishedverb
  • dumbfoundedverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word