(grammar) Continuous vs. Discontinuous: 发抖 vs 颤抖

发抖 and 颤抖 both mean to tremble. However, 颤抖 is continuous, meaning that the subject has already been trembling and is continuing to tremble. The 发 in 发抖 implies "to start," so the subject starts trembling (discontinuous).

Here are other word pairs with the same grammatical connotation:

发觉、察觉

发急、着急

发生、产生

发蒙、启蒙（？）（I'm not sure about this one.）

发难、责难（？）

发扬、宣扬（？）

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To take it one step further, here are 发抖 and 颤抖 used contextually:

他浑身冷得发抖（正确） 他浑身冷得颤抖（错误）（in this sentence, we wish to express that the subject was so cold that he/she started shaking）

颤抖得厉害（正确） 发抖得厉害（错误） （Actually, 发抖得厉害 means "to suddenly begin trembling in an abrupt/violent manner," so you could say this phrase if this is exactly what you mean.）

止不住地颤抖（正确） 止不住地发抖（错误）

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