Chinese word

扒

Pronunciation

Pinyinpá

Meaning

  • verbpickpocket

Example

地铁上有人在扒别人的钱包。dì tiě shàng yǒu rén zài pá bié rén de qián bāo

Someone is pickpocketing people for their wallets on the subway.

Illustration for 扒 (pickpocket)

More examples

他在公交车上被人扒了手机。tā zài gōng jiāo chē shàng bèi rén bā le shǒu jī

Someone pickpocketed his phone on the bus.

Core concept

A quick hand movement removes, loosens, or draws something along, whether it is a layer, a possession, or the body itself.

Common phrases

  • 扒别人的钱包bā bié rén de qián bāo

    pickpocket someone's wallet

  • 扒手机pá shǒu jī

    pickpocket a cellphone

  • 扒口袋bā kǒu dài

    pick someone's pocket

Similar words

偷tōu: Secretly taking someone else's property and keeping it as one's own.
盗窃dào qiè: Unlawfully taking another person's property, especially in formal or legal language.
抢qiǎng: Taking someone's property by using force or threats.
顺手牵羊shùn shǒu qiān yáng: Taking something opportunistically when a chance appears, often without drawing attention.

Definition in Chinese

指用手在别人近旁迅速掏走或拉走财物，属于隐蔽性的偷窃行为。zhǐ yòng shǒu zài bié rén jìn páng xùn sù tāo zǒu huò lā zǒu cái wù shǔ yú yǐn bì xìng de tōu qiè xíng wéi

Word origin

扒 (bā, "to pull or strip away") develops several uses from the basic idea of using the hands to pull something loose, including removing a layer, taking belongings, and pulling oneself up.

Usage tips

  • English often uses separate verbs for stripping, climbing, and covertly taking property, while Chinese uses one compact verb across these actions; the nearby object supplies the sense.

Other meanings

  • peelverb
  • climbverb

Opposites

Related words

Word lists with this word