担忧 is a verb meaning 'to worry (about)' or 'to be anxious (about)'. It combines two characters: 担 (dān), which originally means 'to carry' or 'to bear', and 忧 (yōu), meaning 'anxiety' or 'sorrow'. Together, they evoke the image of 'carrying anxiety' — a vivid metaphor for bearing mental weight due to concern. The word conveys a sustained, often quiet or internalized worry, not sudden panic. It’s commonly used in both spoken and written Chinese, especially when expressing concern for others’ well-being, safety, health, or future outcomes.

Unlike more colloquial terms like 着急 (zháo jí, 'to get anxious'), 担忧 carries a slightly formal or literary tone and frequently appears in contexts involving care, responsibility, or empathy — for example, parents worrying about their children, doctors concerned about a patient’s recovery, or citizens concerned about environmental issues. It typically takes a noun phrase or clause as its object, introduced by the particle 关于 or followed directly by the thing worried about.