恐 (kǒng) is a Chinese character meaning “fear”. It is written from 巩 (firm; to consolidate) and 心 (heart; mind), one above the other, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “fear; to be afraid”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
巩 + 心
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: 说文解字: 恐，懼也。从心巩聲
Memory aid
Something clamped tight (巩) sits right on top of the heart (心) — that squeezed, tight feeling in your chest is fear.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 恐怕kǒng pàI am afraid that; probably; perhaps恐 = kǒng
- 恐怖kǒng bùterror; horror; terrifying恐 = kǒng
- 恐吓kǒng hèto threaten; to intimidate恐 = kǒng
- 恐怖片kǒng bù piànhorror film恐 = kǒng
- 恐惧kǒng jùfear; dread; to be afraid恐 = kǒng
- 有恃无恐yǒu shì wú kǒngto be fearless because one has backing恐 = kǒng
Go deeper
All readings
fear; to be afraid
fear; to be afraid; to frighten; (in 恐怕) I am afraid that, probably
害怕，畏惧；也表示担心、估计（如「恐怕」）。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 恐怕kǒng pàI am afraid that; probably; perhaps恐 = kǒng
- 恐怖kǒng bùterror; horror; terrifying恐 = kǒng
- 恐吓kǒng hèto threaten; to intimidate恐 = kǒng
- 恐怖片kǒng bù piànhorror film恐 = kǒng
- 恐惧kǒng jùfear; dread; to be afraid恐 = kǒng
- 有恃无恐yǒu shì wú kǒngto be fearless because one has backing恐 = kǒng
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 恐 mean?
恐 (kǒng) means fear; to be afraid; to frighten; (in 恐怕) I am afraid that, probably.
How do you pronounce 恐?
It is pronounced kǒng.
What parts is 恐 made of?
巩 (firm; to consolidate) and 心 (heart; mind), one above the other. The recorded source is: 说文解字: 恐，懼也。从心巩聲. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 恐 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 恐?
心. The radical is how the character is filed in a dictionary — it is not the whole story of how the character is built.
What words use 恐?
Common ones are 恐怕 and 恐怖. The reading of 恐 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.