ghê sợ
Definition
Adjective:
- Frightening; terrifying; dreadful: Causing intense fear, horror, or revulsion. Describes something that inspires a strong feeling of fear or shock.
- Appalling; horrifying: Describes something extremely bad, shocking, or morally repugnant.
Verb (to feel ghê sợ):
- To be terrified; to be horrified; to dread: To experience a profound feeling of fear, terror, or extreme aversion towards something.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- Đó là một cảnh tượng ghê sợ. (That is a terrifying scene.)
- Hắn có một vết thương ghê sợ trên tay. (He has a dreadful wound on his hand.)
- Verb:
- Tôi ghê sợ những con rắn. (I am terrified of snakes.)
- Cô ấy ghê sợ sự giả dối. (She is horrified by hypocrisy.)
Advanced Usage
- The word often conveys a stronger, more visceral reaction than simple fear ("sợ"), implying a sense of horror or revulsion.
- It can be used in both concrete contexts (e.g., a frightening monster) and abstract contexts (e.g., horrifying cruelty).
Variants and Related Words
- Ghê (adj/adv): Awful, terrible; very, extremely. Can be used independently to express a strong negative reaction.
- Căn phòng này bẩn ghê. (This room is awfully dirty.)
- Khiếp sợ (v): To be terrified, to be in great fear. A close synonym, often used interchangeably with the verb form of "ghê sợ."
- Chúng tôi khiếp sợ trước sức mạnh của cơn bão. (We were terrified by the storm's power.)
Synonyms
- Frightening: Causing fear.
- Horrifying: Causing horror.
- Dreadful: Inspiring dread.
- Appalling: Shockingly bad.
- To dread: To anticipate with great fear.
Related Idioms and Phrases
- Ghê sợ đến tột cùng: To be utterly horrified.
- Sự tàn bạo của tội ác khiến mọi người ghê sợ đến tột cùng. (The brutality of the crime left people utterly horrified.)
- Làm cho ghê sợ: To frighten, to terrify (someone).
- Bộ phim kinh dị đó làm cho tôi ghê sợ. (That horror movie terrified me.)