怵目惊心 in English chu4 mu4 jing1 xin1 Meaning

Meanings

  • literally (word for word) shocks the eye, astonishes the heart (idiomatic expression); shocking
  • horrible to see
  • a ghastly sight
  • also written 觸目驚心|触目惊心

Simplified Characters

怵 目 惊 心

Traditional Characters

怵 目 驚 心

Pinyin

chu4 mu4 jing1 xin1

Literal

Literal explanation, with pronunciation and meaning of each character.

怵chu4fearful 目mu4eye 惊jing1to startle 心xin1heart