to be startled; to be shocked
HSK level
吃惊 is written with 17 strokes (吃: 6, 惊: 11). The animation replays automatically.
吃惊 (chījīng) is a verb meaning 'to be startled,' 'to be taken aback,' or 'to be shocked' by something unexpected.
It is a separable verb-object compound literally reading 'to eat surprise' (吃 = eat, 惊 = alarm/surprise), where the idea is that a shock is something you swallow or take in. It is neutral in register and common in both speech and writing.
Unlike the English adjective 'shocked,' 吃惊 is a verb, so you say 我很吃惊 ('I am very startled') and often pair it with 令人 or 让人 to mean 'shocking' (令人吃惊). It usually describes genuine surprise at news or an event, not fear; for fright with a physical jolt, speakers prefer 吓一跳 or 惊讶 for a more written tone.
Character by character
Memory hook: You 'eat' (吃) a shock (惊) — you swallow the surprise whole.
吃惊 appears in 2 Fluentide podcast episodes at natural native speed — each with the full Chinese script, pinyin, and line-by-line English translation.
听到这个消息，我非常吃惊。
Tīngdào zhège xiāoxi, wǒ fēicháng chījīng.
When I heard this news, I was very shocked.
neutral
他的话让我大吃一惊。
Tā de huà ràng wǒ dà chī yì jīng.
What he said really startled me.
spoken
这个结果令人吃惊。
Zhège jiéguǒ lìng rén chījīng.
This result is astonishing.
written
看到她突然出现，大家都很吃惊。
Kàndào tā tūrán chūxiàn, dàjiā dōu hěn chījīng.
Everyone was surprised to see her suddenly appear.
neutral
惊讶 is slightly more written and describes the feeling of astonishment. 吃惊 is more colloquial and emphasizes the sudden jolt of being taken aback. Both are common; 惊讶 sounds a touch more formal.
惊奇 carries a note of wonder or curiosity at something novel. 吃惊 is plain shock, often at bad or unexpected news, without the marvel.
吓 means 'to frighten / scare' and involves fear, often as 吓一跳 (jump from fright). 吃惊 is mental surprise without necessarily any fear.
惊喜 is a pleasant surprise ('a nice surprise'). 吃惊 is neutral or negative shock, not delight.
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