#5: Killing Shakespeare

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I’m your host, Jennifer Heinmiller. I am co-author of the Dictionary of and Smoky Mountain and Southern Appalachian English, a historical dictionary that is over 1.3 million words long and covers everything from ain’t to zonies alive.

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afeard (also afeared, afeered, afyered, feard, feared, feered) predicate adjective Afraid.

[Editor’s note: Joseph Hall found that in the Smoky Mountains in the late 1930s afeard was the form universally used in preference to afraid.]

1845 (in 1974 Harris High Times 47) She hugged me mity tite she was “so feered of fallin off that drated poney.” 1847 (in 1870 Drake Pioneer Life KY 82) I was ever afterward “afeard” of wild and wicked horses. 1859 Taliaferro Fisher’s River 209 I’m afeered you’ll fall from grace ef you shout too soon, Sol. 1863 Hill CW Letters (Jan 1) I am all most feard to send [the money] in a letter. 1875 King Great South 536 He volunteered to direct us to the falls, though he “was powerful afeard of snakes. 1913 Kephart Our Sthn High 288 When the mountaineer boy challenges his mate: “I dar ye—I ain’t afeared!” his verb and participle are of the same ancient and sterling rank [as Chaucer and Layamon]. 1924 Raine Saddlebags 97-98 Afeared is more logical than afraid, and was preferred by Lady MacBeth. 1929 Chapman Speech Sthn Highlands 619 “I am afeard” is quite as good English as “I am afraid.” Better, in fact—afeard being the regular participle of the verb “affear,” and “afraid” the very irregular participle of “affray,” an inexplicable variant of “affright.” 1937 Hall Coll (Cades Cove TN) I’m afeared of them copperheads. Ibid. (Kirklands Creek NC) I ain’t nary bit afeared of him. 1938 Bowman High Horizons 46 Nearly all of the older people use the Elizabethan “afeared” while the children usually say “afraid,” I have noticed. 1941 Hall Coll (Cataloochee NC) Pretty nearly all these old people say “afeared.” 1956 Hall Coll (Cades Cove TN) My mother heared them old witch tales. She was afeared she’d see a witch. 1967 Hall Coll (Townsend TN) My daddy wasn’t afeared of them hogs. Hit come up and hit stood right on his breast, looking right down on his face. 1978 Montgomery White Pine Coll I-3 They’d been feared of them. 1989 Smith Flyin’ Bullets 244 That Charles had a lot of nerve, he wasn’t afeared of them in the least bit. 2005 Williams Gratitude 476 afyered. [ultimately Old English afæred, past participle of afæran; OED3 afeard past-part/adj obsolete or dialect c1000; EDD afeard adj in general dialect use in Scot, Irel, Engl; SND afeard/afeart rare since 1700; CUD afeard (also afeart); Web3 afeard adj now dialect; DARE afear(e)d adj once widespread, now chiefly South, Midland]