I felt 'unsafe' or 'insecure'?

[Mehrgan]

Hi there,

In the dark, you hear a spooky noise, should you say you feel insecure or unsafe?


Many thanks.

 

[Tdol]

Of the two, I'd go for unsafe, but I would probably use scared/frightened/worried, etc.

 

[TheParser]

Hi there,

In the dark, you hear a spooky noise, should you say you feel insecure or unsafe?


Many thanks.

***** NOT A TEACHER *****


Hello, Mehrgan:

(1) I am probably wrong, but I feel that "insecure" often refers to

an interior threat; "unsafe," to an exterior threat.

(2) Thus, in your sentence, I would choose "unsafe."

(a) People stay out of that part of town because it has a reputation of

being very unsafe. (A lot of bad people live there.)

(3) Tom: Martha was very rude to me.

Joe: Don't pay attention to her. She is rude to everyone.

Tom: Why?

Joe: Because she's very insecure. (That is, she has interior feelings

of inferiority.)


James