Definition

1. 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.)

1. Frightful, horrible
   • Một tai nạn kinh khủng
     A frightful accident.
2. (thông tục) with a vengeance
   • Trời mưa kinh khủng
     The rain came down with a vengeance