生怕 (shēng pà) — to be extremely afraid (that something bad might happen); for fear that; so as not to
Definition
生怕 (shēngpà) is the colloquial 'for fear that / so as not to' — like 免得 but emphasizes the speaker's worry about a bad outcome, not just avoidance. Stronger than the plain verb 怕 ('to be afraid of').
verb
to be extremely afraid (that something bad might happen)for fear thatso as not to
Examples
- ，生怕。Tā zǒu lù hěn qīng, shēng pà chǎo xǐng bǎo bao.She walks very quietly, for fear of waking the baby.
- 生怕，。Wǒ shēng pà shuō cuò huà, suǒ yǐ yì zhí méi shuō huà.I was extremely afraid of saying the wrong thing, so I kept silent.
- 生怕，。Tā shēng pà chí dào, zǎo zǎo dì jiù chū fā le.He left very early for fear of being late.
Appears in
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