About
The character "怕" is structured with the semantic component 忄, a variant of 心 meaning "heart", combined with the phonetic component 白 meaning "white", forming a phono-semantic compound where 白 historically indicated pronunciation. Initially, the character occasionally conveyed a sense of tranquility in classical texts, but this usage faded as it came to exclusively denote "to fear" or "to be afraid". Its meaning has since broadened slightly to include related emotions such as worry or concern, while its compositional elements have remained unchanged.
Etymology Hide
Example Sentences Hide
我怕一个人在家。
他很怕黑暗。
孩子们怕这位新老师。
你不要怕犯错，要从中学习。
她怕迟到，所以提前出门。
如果你怕忘记，就设置一个提醒。
尽管他怕失败，但仍坚持完成了任务。
由于怕引起不必要的误会，他详细说明了整个情况。