怕 (pà) — how to say "to fear" in Chinese

怕

To fear

verb · adverb

  1. 1. to fear, to be afraid ofHSK 3.0 · level 3

    verb

  2. 2. perhaps, probably; I'm afraid thatHSK 3.0 · level 4

    adverb

Radicals / Keys

心

Heart

#61 · xīn · 4 strokes

Synonyms

Collocations

怕狗

pà gǒu

to fear dogs

怕累

pà lèi

to fear getting tired

Examples

他怕黑,所以晚上不开灯。

He fears the dark, so he doesn't turn off the light at night.

我怕狗。

I fear dogs.

Mnemonic

Mnemonic for 怕 (pà) — to fear

pà... Kitten Pa heard a loud BANG and hid under the blanket. He is so 怕 — he even fears his own shadow! 🐱🛏️

Writing

Try remembering 怕

Three short exercises on meaning and pronunciation. Free, no sign-up needed.

Frequently asked questions

How do you say "to fear" in Chinese?

"to fear" in Chinese is 怕 (pà).

怕 meaning in English

怕 (pà) means "To fear".

How is 怕 pronounced?

It is pronounced pà (written as pa). You can listen to the pronunciation on this page.

How do you write "to fear" in Chinese characters?

It is written 怕 and has 8 strokes. The Writing section above animates the stroke order and lets you trace it.

What HSK 3.0 level is 怕?

怕 is on the HSK 3.0 level 3 word list. It is not part of the six-level HSK 2.0 lists.

Tomyo

Learn Chinese words with spaced repetition

Add 怕 to your vocabulary and remember it with smart reviews, audio and examples.

Download the app

Grammar with 怕

More HSK 3.0 level 3 words