startle

Compared meaning: to move suddenly from fright (verb).

比较义项：因受惊而猛地一动／吓到某人（动词）。

• start

  Intransitive; a sudden involuntary jerk of one's own body from surprise, often followed by 'at' + the cause; somewhat formal or literary, less common in casual speech than 'jump'.

  不及物动词；指自己的身体因受惊而猛地一动，常接“at + 引起惊吓的事物”；用法偏正式或文学化，在日常口语中不如 jump 常用。

  She started at the sound of the door slamming shut.

  她听到门砰地关上的声音，吓了一跳。

• jump

  Intransitive; the everyday, informal word for a startled movement, often with a small hop; very common in casual speech, and pairs with 'jump out of one's skin' for emphasis.

  不及物动词；是日常口语中最常用的说法，指因受惊而突然一动，常带有轻微跳动的意味；常用 jump out of one's skin 来加强语气。

  The sudden knock at the window made him jump.

  窗户上突然的敲击声吓得他跳了起来。

• startle 本词

  Usually transitive: the cause of fright is the subject and the frightened person is the object (often passive 'be startled by'); stronger and more sudden than 'jump', with no sense of physically hopping.

  通常是及物动词：引起惊吓的事物作主语，受惊的人作宾语（常用被动式 be startled by）；语气比 jump 更强烈、更突然，并不含“身体跳起”的意味。

  The fire alarm startled everyone in the office.

  火警警报把办公室里所有人都吓了一跳。

Start, jump, and startle describe a sudden reaction to fright. Start and jump mean the person's body moves; jump is everyday, start more formal. Startle is different: the cause is the subject, and the frightened person is the object. Start's 'begin' sense is not compared.

这三个词都与因受惊吓而产生的突然反应有关，但 start 和 jump 描述的是受惊者自己身体猛地一动，而 startle 通常是及物动词，主语是引起惊吓的事物，宾语才是受惊的人（常用被动式 be startled by）。这里不比较 start 更常见的“开始”义项。

Compared meaning: a sudden movement from fright (noun).

比较义项：因惊吓而突然的动作/反应（名词）。

• start

  The common everyday word for the sudden jerking movement of surprise; typically used in phrases like 'give a start' or 'wake with a start', not in technical writing.

  表示因惊吓而猛然一动的日常常用词，常用于“give a start”（猛然一惊）或“wake with a start”（惊醒）等短语中，不用于科技写作。

  He woke with a start when the alarm suddenly went off.

  闹钟突然响起时，他猛然一惊，醒了过来。

• startle 本词

  Less common as a noun in casual speech; often appears in the technical phrase 'startle response' or 'startle reflex' describing an automatic physical reaction to sudden stimuli.

  作名词时在日常口语中较少使用，常出现在“startle response”或“startle reflex”（惊跳反射）这类术语中，描述对突发刺激的自动生理反应。

  Researchers measured the baby's startle response to a sudden loud noise.

  研究人员测量了婴儿对突如其来的巨响的惊跳反射。

As nouns, start and startle both mean a sudden movement of fright. Start is everyday, common in phrases like 'give a start'. Startle is rare as a noun in speech; it mainly appears in the technical term 'startle response'. Start's 'begin' meaning is not compared.

这两个词都可以指因突然受到惊吓而产生的动作或反应，但语体和搭配不同。start 是日常口语中常见的说法，多见于“give a start”（猛然一惊）或“wake with a start”（惊醒过来）这类固定搭配；startle 作名词较少用于日常口语，更常出现在“startle response”或“startle reflex”（惊跳反射）这类心理学或科学术语中。这里不比较 start 表示“开始”的常见义项。