Taxonomy of meanings for 驚:　　

  • 驚 jīng (OC: kreŋ MC: kɯiaŋ) 舉卿切 平 廣韻：【懼也説文曰馬駭也舉卿切七 】
    • FEAR
      • vadNpassivefrightened
      • vadVas a result of being terrified
      • vt[oN]middle voicebe startled and frightened, terrified; get frightened away (of birds); to panic
      • vtoNfigurativebe, as it were, frightened by the N
      • nabfeaturestate of shock, state of bafflement; state of common fearCH
      • intellectual> SURPRISED
        • vigradedbe astonished (perhaps to be construed as vt-pass)
        • vtoNcausativecause to be astonished> astonish, amaze
        • vt(oN)feel stunned at the sight of NCH
      • causative> FRIGHTEN
        • vtoNfrighten
        • vtoNfigurativefrighten so as to shake up
        • vtoNpassivebe frightened, get frightened, get alerted and frightened
        • vt(oN)scare the contextually determinate NCH
    • =警 WARN

      Additional information about 驚

      說文解字: 【驚】，馬駭也。从馬、敬聲。 【舉卿切】

        Criteria
      • SURPRISED

        1. The current general word for being surprised at something is yì 異.

        2. Guài 怪 refers to mild intellectual surprise, and sometimes even philosophical wonder.

        3. Jīng 驚 refers to heightened surprise mixed with astonishment and fear.

        4. È 愕 is a rare rather literary word for stunned astonishment.

      • FEAR

        1. The most general word for any kind of passing fear is probably jù 懼 and this word naturally links with yōu 憂 "worry", and this word refers to a momentary historical moment where that fear manifested itself ( 文王乃懼 "then King Wén got scared"). Jù sǐ 懼死 is momentary fear for one's life, whereas wèi sǐ 畏死 refers to a general state where one is too frightened to sacrifice one's life.

        2. Kǒng 恐 refers primarily to intense or overwhelming possibly passing state of fear, and the word differs from jù 懼 mainly in degree of intensity and in the managability of the danger faced.

        3. Wèi 畏 is typically a stable state of reasoned fear, typically relating those who are in authority (the etymologically related wēi 威 on which relation there is much word-play in texts like ZUO), or ghosts etc, but the word also has extended generalised uses, as in wèi sǐ 畏死 "be afraid to die".

        4. Jīng 驚 refers to the sudden onset of fear when someone is faced with an unexpected danger.

        5. Lì 栗 / 慄 and zhàn 戰 is to shiver with intense fear, and the physical expression of fear can be more prominent the inner feeling expressed through shivering.

        6. Qiè 怯 "chicken-livered and unlikely to undertake risky tasks" and nuò 懦 (ant. yǒng 勇 "courage, boldness") as well as dàn 憚 "unduly prone to feelings of fear" refer to being pusilanimousness or the lack or courage where courage is required.

        7. Bù 怖 "be in a current acute state of fear" has no weakened generalised uses.

        8. Sǒng 悚 / 聳 "be fretful, given to fear; get slightly frightened" refers to mild forms of (possibly superfluous or reprehensible) fear.

        9. Jì 悸 refers to symptoms of violent heart-beat caused by intense fear.

        NB: Pà 怕 is post-Buddhist (TANG).

      • PEACEFUL

        1. The dominant general word for peacefulness is ān 安 (wēi 危 "in imminent danger"), but in addition the word also often has considerable philosophical depth and commonly refers to a deep state of unruffled inner serenity in harmony with the outer world.

        2. Píng 平 (ant. luàn 亂 "chaos") is prototypically an unruffled smooth surface, and the word refers to a state of harmonious tranquility, particularly in a community of people.

        3. Níng 寧 (ant. yáng 殃 "a totally disastrous state") refers to a state of affairs, primarily in a community of people, where disturbances have ceased.

        4. Yì 佚 / 逸 (ant. láo 勞 "engaged in exhausting effort") refers to restful peace of mind, typically after effort.

        5. Tián 恬 and dàn 淡 (all ant. dòng dàng 動蕩 "be all over the place) refer to serenity in an individual as cultivated, notoriously, by the Taoists.

        6. Jìng 靜 (ant. zào 躁 "flurried), is a state of mind in which one refuses to be rushed into any action and is fully at ease.

        7. Tài 泰 (all ant. jí 急 "be off balance or in urgent need of something, be in a critical state") and yí 夷 (ant. jīng 驚 "be upset") refers to relaxation, the state of being détendu.

      • FRIGHTEN

        1. The current general word for frightening someone in a lasting way is jīng 驚.

        2. Jù 懼 is used causatively to refer quite generally to striking fear into someone, and this state of fear is usually of short duration.

        3. Kǒng 恐 is sometimes used causatively and intensitively to refer to terrifying someone.

        4. Wèi 畏 is used causatively to refer to striking awe-struck fear into someone, and the word is sometimes used in a more general way for frightening.

        5. Hè 赫 / 嚇 is probably a dialect word referring to the frightening of someone.

        NB: Hǔ 唬 "frighten" is post-Han.