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Fearful vs Afraid - What's the difference?

fearful | afraid | Synonyms |

Afraid is a synonym of fearful.



As adjectives the difference between fearful and afraid

is that fearful is frightening while afraid is impressed with fear or apprehension; in fear.

fearful

English

Alternative forms

* fearefull (obsolete) * fearfull (obsolete)

Adjective

(fearfuller)
  • Frightening.
  • Frightened, filled with terror.
  • * 1590 , (Edmund Spenser), The Faerie Queene , III.4:
    • Those two great champions did attonce pursew / The fearefull damzell with incessant payns [...].
  • Terrible.
  • Tending to fear.
    • fearful boy

    Synonyms

    * (frightened) frightened, timid, timorous * See also

    External links

    * *

    afraid

    English

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • Impressed with fear or apprehension; in fear.
    • He is afraid of death.
    He is afraid to die.
    He is afraid that he will die.
  • (colloquial) regretful, sorry
    • I am afraid I can not help you in this matter .

    Usage notes

    * (term) expresses a lesser degree of fear than (terrified) or (frightened). It is often followed by the preposition (term) and the object of fear, or by an infinitive, or by a dependent clause, as shown in the examples above.

    Synonyms

    * (Impressed with fear or apprehension) afeared, alarmed, anxious, apprehensive, fearful, timid, timorous * (Regretful) sorry * See also

    Derived terms

    * 'fraid * afraidness * I'm afraid not * I'm afraid so * unafraid

    See also

    * fear

    Statistics

    * 1000 English basic words ----