The sudden explosion left people terrified out of their wits.
Tips
culture
In Chinese tradition the gallbladder (胆) is the seat of courage - to 'lose your gallbladder' is to lose your nerve entirely. The same metaphor drives 胆大 'bold' (lit. 'big gall') and 胆小 'timid' (lit. 'small gall').
usage
Most often appears in the four-character set phrase 闻风丧胆 'lose one's nerve at the mere rumor' - describing reputations so fearsome the enemy panics on hearing the name.
