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惊弓之鸟

jīnggōngzhīniǎo

Traditional: 驚弓之鳥

lit. a bird startled by the mere twang of a bow (idiom) / fig. sb who frightens easily, due to past experiences

Character Breakdown

惊
jīng
to frighten, to startle; surprise, alarm
HSK 4
弓
gōng
bow; curved, arched
之
zhī
marks preceding phrase as modifier of following phrase; it, him her, them; to go to
HSK 4
鸟
niǎo
bird
HSK 3

Additional Information

Category
Chinese
HSK Character Level
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HSK Word Level
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