afraid

afraid
This word, meaning "filled with fear, apprehension, concern, or regret," is overused in everyday conversation with the verb to be as a loose, inaccurate synonym for "to think," "to feel," "to believe." Avoid such statements as "I'm afraid you're wrong" and "I'm afraid not," unless your concern, regret, or worry is strong and intense. In speaking and writing, do not use afraid unless you could equally well employ scared, apprehensive, fearful, frightened, alarmed, or terrified. In casual and informal conversation, afraid is often used either apologetically or in an attempt to soften or lessen an unpleasant statement: "I'm afraid I have bad news for you."

Dictionary of problem words and expressions. . 1975.

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Synonyms:
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  • Afraid — A*fraid , p. a. [OE. afrayed, affraide, p. p. of afraien to affray. See {Affray}, and cf. {Afeard}.] Impressed with fear or apprehension; in fear; apprehensive. [Afraid comes after the noun it limits.] Back they recoiled, afraid. Milton. [1913… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • afraid — [ə frād′] adj. [ME affraied, pp. of affraien, AFFRAY] feeling fear; frightened; apprehensive: followed by of, that, or an infinitive: often used informally to indicate regret [I m afraid I can t go] SYN. AFRAID is applied to a general feeling of… …   English World dictionary

  • Afraid — «Afraid» Sencillo de Mötley Crüe del álbum Generation Swine Publicación 1997 Formato CD Grabación 1996 Género(s) Glam metal …   Wikipedia Español

  • afraid — ► ADJECTIVE ▪ fearful or anxious. ● I m afraid Cf. ↑I m afraid ORIGIN from Old French afrayer disturb, startle …   English terms dictionary

  • afraid — (adj.) early 14c., originally pp. of afray frighten, from Anglo Fr. afrayer, from O.Fr. esfreer (see AFFRAY (Cf. affray) (n.)). A rare case of an English adjective that never stands before a noun. Because it was used in A.V. Bible, it acquired… …   Etymology dictionary

  • afraid — afraid; un·afraid; …   English syllables

  • afraid — [adj1] fearful abashed, aghast, alarmed, anxious, apprehensive, aroused, blanched, cowardly, cowed, daunted, discouraged, disheartened, dismayed, distressed, disturbed, faint hearted, frightened, frozen, have cold feet*, horrified, in awe,… …   New thesaurus

  • afraid — I adjective affrighted, alarmed, anxious, apprehensive, cautious, distrustful, dreading, fearful, frightened, haunted by fear, leery, nervous, scared, shrinking, terrified, terror stricken, timid, timorous, uneasy II index caitiff, leery,… …   Law dictionary

  • afraid — *fearful, apprehensive Analogous words: alarmed, scared (see FRIGHTEN): timorous, *timid Antonyms: unafraid: sanguine Contrasted words: *cool, composed, imperturbable, collected: *confident, assured, sure …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • afraid — a|fraid W2S1 [əˈfreıd] adj [not before noun] [Date: 1300 1400; Origin: Past participle of affray to frighten (14 19 centuries), from Old French affreer; AFFRAY] 1.) frightened because you think that you may get hurt or that something bad may… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • afraid — a|fraid [ ə freıd ] adjective never before noun *** 1. ) frightened, for example because you feel you are in danger: Don t be afraid, I won t hurt you. afraid of: Everyone seems to be afraid of her. He s afraid of flying. afraid to do something:… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

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