How to Say Fear in 70 Different Languages

“Fear” is a fundamental emotion experienced universally, but the word itself takes on many different forms across languages. This deep-seated feeling, while often uncomfortable, plays a crucial role in our survival instincts. For language enthusiasts or travelers, knowing how to express this emotion can be both practical and enriching. Here’s how to articulate “fear” in 70 different languages, each entry accompanied by the respective country’s flag and a pronunciation guide.

1. Albanian (🇦🇱) – Frika | Pronunciation: Free-kah
2. Arabic (Standard) (🇸🇦) – خوف (Khawf) | Pronunciation: Khawf
3. Armenian (🇦🇲) – Տարակուսանք (Taracusank) | Pronunciation: Tuh-rah-koo-sahnk
4. Azerbaijani (🇦🇿) – Qorxu | Pronunciation: Gor-khoo
5. Basque (🇪🇸) – Beldur | Pronunciation: Bel-dur
6. Belarusian (🇧🇾) – Страх (Strakh) | Pronunciation: Strahkh
7. Bengali (🇧🇩) – ভয় (Bhôy) | Pronunciation: Bhoy
8. Bosnian (🇧🇦) – Strah | Pronunciation: Strah
9. Bulgarian (🇧🇬) – Страх (Strakh) | Pronunciation: Strahkh
10. Catalan (🇪🇸 – Catalonia) – Por | Pronunciation: Por
11. Czech (🇨🇿) – Strach | Pronunciation: Strahkh
12. Danish (🇩🇰) – Frygt | Pronunciation: Frygt
13. Dutch (🇳🇱) – Angst | Pronunciation: Ahngst
14. English (🇺🇸 / 🇬🇧) – Fear | Pronunciation: Fear
15. Estonian (🇪🇪) – Hirm | Pronunciation: Herm
16. Farsi (Persian) (🇮🇷) – ترس (Tars) | Pronunciation: Tars
17. Finnish (🇫🇮) – Pelko | Pronunciation: Pel-ko
18. French (🇫🇷) – Peur | Pronunciation: Pur
19. Georgian (🇬🇪) – შიში (Shishi) | Pronunciation: Shee-shee
20. German (🇩🇪) – Angst | Pronunciation: Ahngst
21. Greek (🇬🇷) – Φόβος (Fóvos) | Pronunciation: Foh-vos
22. Hebrew (🇮🇱) – פחד (Pachad) | Pronunciation: Pah-khad
23. Hindi (🇮🇳) – डर (Dar) | Pronunciation: Dahr
24. Hungarian (🇭🇺) – Félelem | Pronunciation: Fey-le-lem
25. Icelandic (🇮🇸) – Ótti | Pronunciation: Oht-tee
26. Indonesian (🇮🇩) – Takut | Pronunciation: Tah-koot
27. Irish Gaelic (🇮🇪) – Eagla | Pronunciation: Ag-lah
28. Italian (🇮🇹) – Paura | Pronunciation: Pow-ra
29. Japanese (🇯🇵) – 恐怖 (Kyōfu) | Pronunciation: Kyo-foo
30. Kazakh (🇰🇿) – Қорқыныш (Qorqynysh) | Pronunciation: Kor-kin-ish
31. Khmer (Cambodian) (🇰🇭) – ភាពភ័យ (Pheap Phay) | Pronunciation: Pee-ap Pai
32. Korean (🇰🇷) – 공포 (Gongpo) | Pronunciation: Gong-po
33. Kurdish (🇮🇶 / 🇸🇾 / 🇹🇷 / 🇮🇷) – ترس (Tirs) | Pronunciation: Teers
34. Kyrgyz (🇰🇬) – Коркунуч (Korkunuch) | Pronunciation: Kor-koo-nooch
35. Lao (🇱🇦) – ຢູ່ຢ້ານ (Yu Yān) | Pronunciation: Yoo Yahn
36. Latvian (🇱🇻) – Bailes | Pronunciation: Bye-les
37. Lithuanian (🇱🇹) – Baimė | Pronunciation: Bye-meh
38. Luxembourgish (🇱🇺) – Angscht | Pronunciation: Ang-sht
39. Macedonian (🇲🇰) – Страв (Strav) | Pronunciation: Strahv
40. Malay (🇲🇾 / 🇮🇩) – Takut | Pronunciation: Tah-koot
41. Maltese (🇲🇹) – Biża’ | Pronunciation: Bee-za
42. Mandarin Chinese (🇨🇳) – 恐惧 (Kǒngjù) | Pronunciation: Kong-joo
43. Marathi (🇮🇳) – भीती (Bhītī) | Pronunciation: Bhee-tee
44. Mongolian (🇲🇳) – Айх (Aikh) | Pronunciation: Aikh
45. Nepali (🇳🇵) – डर (Dar) | Pronunciation: Dahr
46. Norwegian (🇳🇴) – Frykt | Pronunciation: Frykt
47. Pashto (🇦🇫) – ډار (Ḍār) | Pronunciation: Daar
48. Persian (Farsi) (🇮🇷) – ترس (Tars) | Pronunciation: Tars
49. Polish (🇵🇱) – Strach | Pronunciation: Strahkh
50. Portuguese (🇵🇹 / 🇧🇷) – Medo | Pronunciation: Meh-doo
51. Romanian (🇷🇴) – Frică | Pronunciation: Free-kah
52. Russian (🇷🇺) – Страх (Strakh) | Pronunciation: Strahkh
53. Serbian (🇷🇸) – Страх (Strah) | Pronunciation: Strah
54. Sinhala (🇱🇰) – බිය (Biya) | Pronunciation: Bee-ya
55. Slovak (🇸🇰) – Strach | Pronunciation: Strahkh
56. Slovenian (🇸🇮) – Strah | Pronunciation: Strah
57. Somali (🇸🇴) – Cabsi | Pronunciation: Cab-see
58. Spanish (🇪🇸) – Miedo | Pronunciation: Mee-eh-do
59. Swahili (🇰🇪 / 🇹🇿) – Hofu | Pronunciation: Ho-foo
60. Swedish (🇸🇪) – Rädsla | Pronunciation: Red-sla
61. Tajik (🇹🇯) – Тарс (Tars) | Pronunciation: Tars
62. Tamil (🇮🇳) – பயம் (Bayam) | Pronunciation: Bah-yum
63. Telugu (🇮🇳) – భయం (Bhayam) | Pronunciation: Bhay-yum
64. Thai (🇹🇭) – ความกลัว (Khwām kluā) | Pronunciation: Kwaam klu-a
65. Turkish (🇹🇷) – Korku | Pronunciation: Kor-koo
66. Ukrainian (🇺🇦) – Страх (Strakh) | Pronunciation: Strahkh
67. Urdu (🇵🇰) – ڈر (Dar) | Pronunciation: Dahr
68. Uzbek (🇺🇿) – Qo’rquv | Pronunciation: Ko’r-kuv
69. Vietnamese (🇻🇳) – Sợ hãi | Pronunciation: So high
70. Welsh (🇬🇧 – Wales) – Ofn | Pronunciation: Ovn