to doubt; suspect; be skeptical
HSK level
怀疑 (huáiyí) is a verb meaning to doubt, to suspect, or to be skeptical — to hold uncertainty about whether something is true, or to suspect someone of wrongdoing.
It splits into two English senses that share one Chinese word. First, 'to doubt': 我怀疑他说的是真的吗 questions the truth of a claim. Second, 'to suspect': 警察怀疑他是小偷 'the police suspect he's the thief.' Crucially, unlike English where 'I doubt that he'll come' means you think he won't, 怀疑他会来 can be read as 'I suspect he might come,' so context and structure matter.
It also works as a noun ('doubt, suspicion'). Register is neutral, common in everyday talk, news, and detective contexts. Compare 猜疑 (suspicion tinged with distrust of people) and 质疑 (to openly challenge/question a claim).
Character by character
Memory hook: 怀 (harbor) + 疑 (doubt) — to harbor a doubt in your mind.
怀疑 appears in 2 Fluentide podcast episodes at natural native speed — each with the full Chinese script, pinyin, and line-by-line English translation.
我有点怀疑这个消息是不是真的。
Wǒ yǒudiǎn huáiyí zhège xiāoxi shì bu shì zhēn de.
I'm a bit doubtful whether this news is true.
spoken
别总是怀疑自己，你能做到。
Bié zǒngshì huáiyí zìjǐ, nǐ néng zuòdào.
Don't always doubt yourself, you can do it.
spoken
警察怀疑他和这起案件有关。
Jǐngchá huáiyí tā hé zhè qǐ ànjiàn yǒuguān.
The police suspect he's connected to the case.
neutral
我毫不怀疑她的能力。
Wǒ háo bù huáiyí tā de nénglì.
I have no doubt about her ability.
written
怀疑 is written with 21 strokes (怀: 7, 疑: 14). Tap replay to watch each character drawn again.
质疑 means to openly challenge or question the validity of a claim, often out loud and formally. 怀疑 is the private state of doubting or suspecting. You 质疑 a report publicly; you 怀疑 it in your mind.
猜疑 specifically means groundless suspicion and distrust of people, with a negative flavor. 怀疑 is broader and can be reasonable doubt about facts, not just distrust of a person.
疑问 is a noun meaning a question or query in one's mind. 怀疑 is the verb 'to doubt/suspect.' You have a 疑问; you 怀疑 something.
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