Meaning of 支付
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to pay (money)
How to use 支付
支付 is a slightly formal word for paying, common in banking, shopping apps and official notices. You often see it in 支付宝 (Zhīfùbǎo), the Alipay app. Example: 你可以用手机支付。(Nǐ kěyǐ yòng shǒujī zhīfù.) You can pay with your phone.
支 (zhī) means to pay out or disburse, as in 支出 (zhīchū), and 付 (fù) means to hand over, as in 付出 (fùchū). Picture yourself paying out money and handing it over, and you have 支付 (zhīfù), to pay.
Common mistake: Learners often use 支付 in casual speech where 付钱 (fù qián) or 给钱 (gěi qián) sounds more natural, such as when splitting a dinner bill with friends. Also keep 付 (fù, fourth tone) apart from 附 (fù), which means attached and has the ear radical on the left.
支付 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
支 zhī · to support · 4 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
付 fù · to pay · 5 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
Related words
Words that share a character with 支付.
| 支持 | zhīchí | to be in favor of; to support |
| 对付 | duìfu | to handle; to deal with; to tackle; to get by with; to make do |
| 付出 | fùchū | to pay; to expend; to invest (energy or time) |
| 支配 | zhīpèi | to control; to dominate |
| 支出 | zhīchū | to spend; to pay out; expenses; expenditure |
| 支援 | zhīyuán | to provide assistance; to support |
| 支撑 | zhīchēng | to prop up; to support |
| 支票 | zhīpiào | check (bank); cheque |
| 应付 | yìngfu | to deal with; to cope |
| 付款 | fùkuǎn | to pay a sum of money; payment |
| 付费 | fùfèi | to pay; to cover the costs |
| 开支 | kāizhī | expenditures; expenses (CL:筆|笔[bi3],項|项[xiang4]); to spend money |
Questions about 支付
What does 支付 mean?
支付 (zhīfù) means "to pay (money)" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 支付?
支付 is made of 2 characters: 支 (4 strokes), 付 (5 strokes). That is 9 strokes in total.
Is 支付 an HSK word?
Yes. 支付 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 支付 and 付出?
支付 is about paying money, such as a bill or a fee. 付出 can mean paying, but it usually means investing effort, time or feelings, as in 付出很多努力 (fùchū hěn duō nǔlì), to put in a lot of effort.
Can 支付 take an object directly?
Yes. You can say 支付费用 (zhīfù fèiyòng), to pay the fees, or 支付工资 (zhīfù gōngzī), to pay wages. To mention the payment method, use 用 before the verb, as in 用现金支付 (yòng xiànjīn zhīfù), to pay in cash.