Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 驚訝 / 惊讶 | jīngyà |
| 驚喜 / 惊喜 | jīngxǐ |
The word 驚訝 / 惊讶 refers to the feeling that something unexpected has happened, such as being surprised or astonished. To ask "Are you surprised?" you can say 你感到惊讶吗？ If you want to say you are greatly surprised, you can use the idiom 大吃一惊. To express the verb "to cause (someone) to feel surprise," use the phrase 使吃驚 / 使吃惊.
What does it mean word for word?
The term 驚喜 / 惊喜 is a compound of 驚 (to startle or surprise) and 喜 (joy or happiness).
Which one should you use?
Use 驚訝 / 惊讶 when the surprise is neutral or carries a sense of shock or astonishment. In contrast, use 驚喜 / 惊喜 specifically when the surprise is a positive or joyful event.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
When expressing the feeling of being surprised in a sentence, you often use the verb 感到 (to feel) before 驚訝 / 惊讶. To function as a causative verb meaning "to make someone feel surprised," use the phrase 使吃驚 / 使吃惊.
How do you pronounce it?
jīngyà
Did you know?
- The character 驚 in 驚訝 originally depicted a bird being startled and flying up. It captures the sudden, jerky movement associated with being surprised.
- Chinese has several 'surprise' idioms involving the heart, such as 心驚膽戰, where surprise is linked to the 'gallbladder' to describe extreme fear or shock.
- The word for 'startle' in the phrase 大吃一惊 actually translates to 'eating a big shock', though it has nothing to do with food.
Examples in context
- 他听到这个好消息感到非常惊讶。He was extremely surprised to hear the good news.
- 她看到了一个陌生人在她家门口，感到非常吃惊。She was very surprised to see a stranger at her doorstep.
- 听到他来参加我们的聚会，我们都感到非常意外。We were all very surprised to hear that he is coming to our gathering.
- 你们要搬到另一个城市去？真的吗？You're moving to another city? Really?
- 你跳舞跳得太好了，我太惊讶了！You dance so well, I'm amazed!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “surprise” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
