Writing
怕 (pà) — how to say "to fear" in Chinese
怕
To fear
verb · adverb
1. to fear, to be afraid ofHSK 3.0 · level 3
verb
2. perhaps, probably; I'm afraid thatHSK 3.0 · level 4
adverb
Radicals / Keys
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

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