英語可說 fear sb to do sth 嗎？

有網友在本站“答疑中心”問：英語是否可以說 fear sb to do sth。

按漢語的表達習慣，我們可以說“害怕某人做某事”“擔心某人做某事”，但英語是否可以說 fear sb to do sth 呢？回答是否定的。

英語動詞 fear  習慣上不接不定式的復合結構作賓語。如：

◎我擔心他會失敗。

正：I fear that he will fail.

誤：I fear him to fail.

◎我害怕他們再把我關起來。

正：I was terrified they would lock me up again.

誤：I feared them to lock me up again.

◎跟你說實話吧，我非常害怕他回來。

正：To tell you the truth, I'm rather dreading his return.

誤：To tell you the truth, I fear him to return.

◎我擔心他這樣苦干下去，精神會崩潰的。

正：I was worried he might have a breakdown if he carried on working so hard.

誤：I feared him to have a breakdown if he carried on working so hard.

◎我們擔心他在舞臺上緊張，但事實上它表現得很好。

正：We were afraid he would be nervous on stage, but in the event he performed beautifully.

誤：We feared him to be nervous on stage, but in the event he performed beautifully.

◎我害怕他會離開我，所以纏著他不放。

正：I was terrified he would leave me, so I was clinging to him.

誤：I feared him to leave me, so I was clinging to him.

◎父母擔心他們可能會逾越這些無形的界限。

正：Parents fear they might overstep these invisible boundaries.

誤：Parents fear them to overstep these invisible boundaries.

◎官員們擔心他會把對外交的重視理解為軟弱的表現。

正：Officials fear that he might interpret the emphasis on diplomacy as a sign of weakness.

誤：Officials fear him to interpret the emphasis on diplomacy as a sign of weakness.