Chinese word

生怕

Pronunciation

Pinyinshēng pà

Meaning

  • adverbbe afraid that

Example

他生怕迟到，所以早一点出门。tā shēng pà chí dào suó yǐ zǎo yì diǎn chū mén

He was afraid that he would be late, so he left a little early.

Illustration for 生怕 (be afraid that)

More examples

她生怕出错，所以考试前反复检查答案。tā shēng pà chū cuò suó yǐ kǎo shì qián fǎn fù jiǎn chá dá àn

She was afraid of making a mistake, so she checked her answers repeatedly before the exam.

Core concept

A feared possibility stays in the foreground, shaping careful choices made to keep it from becoming real.

Common phrases

  • 生怕出错shēng pà chū cuò

    be afraid of making a mistake

  • 生怕丢脸shēng pà diū liǎn

    be afraid of losing face

  • 生怕打扰别人shēng pà dá rǎo bié rén

    be afraid of bothering others

Similar words

恐怕kǒng pà: Worry that something may happen, sometimes used to suggest that it is likely.
就怕jiù pà: Fear that one particular event will happen and create a problem.
只怕zhǐ pà: Strong focus on one feared possibility as the main source of concern.
唯恐wéi kǒng: Intense fear of a possible event, with a strong wish to prevent it.

Definition in Chinese

因为担心某事会发生而感到害怕，常表示为了避免那件事而采取预防或注意的态度。yīn wèi dān xīn mǒu shì huì fā shēng ér gǎn dào hài pà cháng biǎo shì wèi le bì miǎn nà jiàn shì ér cái qǔ yù fáng huò zhù yì de tài dù

Word origin

生怕 (shēngpà, "be afraid that") uses 生 (shēng, "strongly") as an intensifier before 怕 (pà, "fear"), linking strong fear with a possible event.

Usage tips

  • Chinese can place 生怕 (shēngpà, "be afraid that") before the possible event and then give the practical response, so the sentence often moves from concern to precaution in that order.

Word lists with this word