Afraid
Afraid adjective - Filled with fear or dread.
Usage example: Melissa is afraid of flying, so she takes a train from Boston to visit her brother in Chicago
Cautious
Cautious adjective - Having or showing a close attentiveness to avoiding danger or trouble.
Afraid and cautious are semantically related. Sometimes you can use "Afraid" instead an adjective "Cautious".
Nearby Words: caution, cautiously
Mutual synonyms
Both words in one sentence
- Cautious and sensible Elon of Ears for Elves is afraid of heights (or at least, walking across a log above a river of indeterminate depth and swiftness).
Source: Primal Fear - Notably he doesn't drink because he's afraid of losing control of his super strength and after a certain incident involving Gwen Stacy is crazy cautious about calculating the force necessary to safely catch someone with a web line.
Source: Afraid of Their Own Strength
Cite this Source
Cautious and Afraid. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 07, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/afraid/cautious
Afraid & Cautious. N.p., 2016. Web. 07 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/afraid/cautious>.
Cautious or Afraid. 2016. Accessed August 07, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/afraid/cautious.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "afraid" and "cautious" have occurred on timeline