Chinese word

报答

Pronunciation

Pinyinbào dá

Meaning

  • verbrepay

Example

我想报答她对我的帮助。wǒ xiǎng bào dá tā duì wǒ de bāng zhù

I want to repay her for her help.

Illustration for 报答 (repay)

More examples

她希望能用实际行动来报答老师多年的培养。tā xī wàng néng yòng shí jì xíng dòng lái bào dá lǎo shī duō nián de péi yǎng

She hopes to repay her teacher for years of guidance with concrete actions.

Core concept

A deliberate response that returns received kindness through helpful action, care, or a gift.

Common phrases

  • 很难报答hěn nán bào dá

    be hard to repay

  • 报答恩情bào dá ēn qíng

    repay a kindness

  • 以行动报答yǐ xíng dòng bào dá

    repay with actions

Similar words

回报huí bào: To give something back for help or a benefit received, especially through action or payment.
报恩bào ēn: To repay a person's kindness with gratitude shown through words or actions.
补偿bǔ cháng: To restore what was lost or make up for harm or disadvantage with money or action.
酬谢chóu xiè: To thank someone by presenting money, a gift, or another helpful offering.

Definition in Chinese

把别人给予的好处、照顾或帮助通过行为、金钱等方式偿还给对方。bǎ bié rén jí yǔ de hǎo chù zhào gù huò bāng zhù tōng guò xíng wéi jīn qián děng fāng shì cháng huán gěi duì fāng

Word origin

报答 (bàodá, "repay") combines 报 (bào, "return a favor") and 答 (dá, "answer"), framing kindness as something answered with a fitting response.

Usage tips

  • In everyday Chinese, the object can be a person, kindness, or help, so the verb keeps both the source of the favor and the response in view.

Other meanings

  • thankverb

Opposites

  • 忘恩负义wàng ēn fù yìbe ungratefulverb

Related words

  • 报答者bào dá zhěone who repays a kindnessnoun

Word lists with this word