[General] I am afraid

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anhnha

Senior Member
Joined
May 5, 2012
Member Type
Student or Learner
Native Language
Vietnamese
Home Country
Vietnam
Current Location
Vietnam
Hello,
I am a little bit confused on the place of "I am afraid" in the sentence.
I don't understand your question, I am afraid.
Here, we use "
I am afraid" at the end of the sentence.
Please help me clarify something about the use of it in the sentence?
1. Can I use "
I am afraid" at the beginning of the sentence like this?
I am afraid, I don't understand your question.
2. Is there any difference in meaning between them?
In my language, "
I am afraid" almost used at the beginning of the sentence, therefore I feel it is easier to understand if it appear at the beginning of the sentence.
Thank a lot!

 

emsr2d2

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Jul 28, 2009
Member Type
English Teacher
Native Language
British English
Home Country
UK
Current Location
UK
You can put it at the beginning but you need to remove the comma.

I'm afraid I don't understand your question = I'm afraid [that] I don't understand your question.

I'm afraid, I don't understand your question = I'm afraid (scared) AND I don't understand your question.
 
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