Kanji 怖 dreadful, be frightened, fearful 畏 fear, majestic, graciously Related words 恐れる is the modern standard verb for 'to fear', while 恐る is its archaic form found mainly in classical texts and fixed expressions like 恐るべき .
怖い is a common modern adjective meaning 'scary/frightening', whereas 恐る is an archaic verb meaning 'to fear', so they differ in both era and part of speech.
Word family fearfully; timidly; cautiously; gingerly
terrible; dreadful; horrifying · astonishing; staggering; tremendous
awesome; incredible; formidable
Written forms 恐おそ る Usage 69%
Archaic verb form; the modern equivalent is 恐れる . This spelling is the most common kanji representation in classical texts.
おそる Usage 21%
怖おそ る Usage 7%
Archaic variant kanji, emphasizing fright or terror.
懼おそ る Usage 2%
Rare archaic variant kanji, with a nuance of dread or apprehension.
畏おそ る Usage 1%
Archaic variant kanji, often with a nuance of awe or reverence rather than simple fear.
Etymology Archaic verb; the modern form 恐れる developed from it. The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but it is a native Japanese word.
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