Chinese word

抓拍

Pronunciation

Pinyinzhuā pāi

Meaning

  • verbsnap

Example

他用手机在街上抓拍了孩子们的笑脸。tā yòng shǒu jī zài jiē shàng zhuā pāi le hái zi men de xiào liǎn

He used his phone to snap photos of the children's smiling faces on the street.

Illustration for 抓拍 (snap)

More examples

他用手机在球场上抓拍到一幕精彩的瞬间。tā yòng shǒu jī zài qiú chǎng shàng zhuā pāi dào yí mù jīng cǎi de shùn jiān

He used his phone to take a candid photo of a wonderful moment at the ballpark.

Core concept

A camera or recording device catches and fixes a fleeting scene in one quick moment.

Common phrases

  • 抓拍动作zhuā pāi dòng zuò

    snap action photos

  • 现场抓拍xiàn chǎng zhuā pāi

    snap photos on site

  • 用手机抓拍yòng shǒu jī zhuā pāi

    snap photos with a phone

Similar words

拍照pāi zhào: Use a phone or camera to take a photo.
拍摄pāi shè: Use a camera to record pictures or video of a subject.

Definition in Chinese

用相机或设备在短时间内捕捉到某一瞬间的画面，既可指人工瞬间拍摄，也可指监控等自动抓取。yòng xiàng jī huò shè bèi zài duǎn shí jiān nèi bǔ zhuō dào mǒu yí shùn jiān de huà miàn jì kě zhǐ rén gōng shùn jiān pāi shè yě kě zhǐ jiān kòng děng zì dòng zhuā qǔ

Word origin

The compound combines 抓 (zhuā, "grab") with 拍 (pāi, "pat"), treating a fleeting scene as something a camera can seize through a quick picture.

Usage tips

  • The word can describe both a person taking a candid photo and a security system recording an event automatically, so it appears in news and public-safety contexts as well as daily conversation.

Word lists with this word