kinh khủng
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Adjective:
- Frightful, horrible, terrifying: Describes something that causes extreme fear, shock, or revulsion due to its intensity, scale, or awful nature.
- Extreme, tremendous, severe: Used colloquially to emphasize a very high degree or intensity of something, not necessarily negative, but often overwhelming.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- Một vụ tai nạn kinh khủng. (A frightful accident.)
- Cơn bão có sức tàn phá kinh khủng. (The storm had terrifying destructive power.)
- Hôm qua tôi đau đầu kinh khủng. (I had a terrible headache yesterday.)
- Trời nóng kinh khủng. (The weather is terribly hot.)
Advanced Usage
- Can function as an adverb in colloquial speech to modify adjectives or verbs, meaning "extremely" or "terribly."
- Phim đó kinh khủng hay! (That movie was awfully good!)
- Nó chạy kinh khủng nhanh. (He runs incredibly fast.)
Variants and Related Words
Kinh hãi (adj): horrified, terrified. Focuses more on the feeling of fear itself.
- Cảnh tượng khiến mọi người kinh hãi. (The scene left everyone horrified.)
Khủng khiếp (adj): This is a direct synonym, interchangeable in most contexts, also meaning dreadful, horrendous.
Synonyms
- Horrible: causing or likely to cause horror; shocking.
- Terrible: extremely bad or serious; causing terror.
- Awful: very bad or unpleasant; used also for emphasis.
- Tremendous: very great in amount, scale, or intensity (for the emphatic, colloquial use).
Related Idioms and Phrases
Kinh khủng khiếp: A reinforced form for extra emphasis, meaning "absolutely horrific" or "utterly terrible."
- Chiến tranh là một điều kinh khủng khiếp. (War is an absolutely horrific thing.)
Sợ kinh khủng: To be terribly afraid.
- Đứa trẻ sợ kinh khủng tiếng sấm. (The child is terribly afraid of thunder.)
- Frightful, horrible
- Một tai nạn kinh khủngA frightful accident.
- (thông tục) with a vengeance
- Trời mưa kinh khủngThe rain came down with a vengeance