惊弓之鸟 jīng gōng zhī niǎo

DEFINITIONS

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

CHARACTERS

惊 jīng
HSK 4
frighten, surprise, startle
弓 gōng bow; curved, arched; KangXi radical number 57
之 zhī
HSK 4
marks preceding phrase as modifier of following phrase; it, him her, them; go to
鸟 niǎo
HSK 3
bird; KangXi radical 196