1. be afraid of doing有两个用法：
（1）害怕、担心某个不好的事情会发生，即worried or anxious about sth. which might happen“担心、害怕会发生某事”，如：
The road to the airport was very busy and we were afraid of missing the plane.
到机场的路很拥挤,我们担心要误飞机。
You need not be afraid of being punished.
你不必害怕受罚。
He's afraid of looking foolish in front of his friends.
他怕在朋友面前出丑。
They are afraid of losing their national identity.
他们担心会失去他们的民族特色。
He was afraid of losing his independence.
他害怕失去自己的独立性。
She seems awfully afraid of losing her job.
她好像特别害怕失去她的工作。
She was afraid of upsetting her parents.
她担心会使她父母不安。
The European members are afraid of upsetting the delicate balance of political interests
欧洲成员国害怕会打乱各政治利益集团间的微妙平衡。
They were afraid of answering the questions and incriminating themselves.
他们担心因回答这些问题而受到牵连。
I was afraid of getting left on the shelf.
我害怕嫁不出去。
She was afraid of going mad.
她担心自己会疯掉。
He is not afraid of dying. 他不怕死。
They were afraid of being turned down when they asked girls to dance at high school hops.
他们在中学社交舞会上邀请女孩子跳舞时，害怕会遭到拒绝。
I don't like to speak Spanish because I'm afraid of making mistakes.
我不喜欢说西班牙语，因为怕出错。
Let's not be afraid of ending when the end has been completed.
当终点已经降下帷幕的时候我们不要害怕结束。
（2） 胆小不敢做某事、不愿意做某，“(因担心其后果而)不敢去做某事或不愿意做某事”
She seemed a little afraid of going inside.
她好像有点害怕进去。
I started to feel afraid of going out alone at night.
我开始害怕夜间单独外出了。
She was afraid of waking him. 她不敢叫醒他。
I'm not afraid of hurting you.
我不怕伤害你。
I’m afraid of telling her.
我不敢告诉她。
I'm afraid of diving into the swimming pool.( =I don't want to do it.)
我害怕在游泳池里跳水。
I'm afraid of telling/to tell her the truth.我不敢告诉她真情。
2. be afraid to do胆小不敢做某事、不愿意做某，“(因担心其后果而)不敢去做某事”
即unwilling to do sth, because you are frightened，如：
He is afraid to do it.
他不敢做做这事。
I'm afraid of telling/to tell her the truth.
我不敢告诉她真情。
She was afraid to leave her room.她不敢离开她的房间。
She was afraid to see you again.她不敢再见你了。
Don't be afraid to ask questions.不要不敢提问题。
He was afraid to take even a drink of water.他甚至连水也不敢喝。
To tell you the truth, I was afraid to see him
坦白说，我害怕见他。
He doesn't want to meet me. I, too, have been afraid to talk to him
他不想见我。我也害怕和他谈话。
She stayed at home, afraid to show her face.
她待在家里，不敢露面。
He thinks that some workers may be afraid to put questions publicly.
他认为一些工人可能害怕公开提问。
She was afraid to open the door.
她不敢开门。
I was afraid to open the door lest he should follow me
我不敢开门，唯恐他还跟着我。
She is not afraid to laugh at herself.
她不怕取笑自己。
Don't be afraid to admit to your mistakes.
不要怕认错。
I'm still afraid to sleep in my own bedroom.
我还是不敢在自己的卧室里睡觉。
Shop in small local markets and don't be afraid to bargain.
在当地的小店购物，不要害怕砍价。
Don't be afraid to ask for advice about ordering the meal
点餐时可以大胆征求意见。
Don't be afraid to consider apparently extravagant ideas.
要勇于考虑一些貌似离谱的想法。
They are afraid to contact the social services in case they are labelled a problem family
由于害怕被贴上“问题家庭”的标签，他们不敢联系社会福利机构。
Don't be afraid to stand up for yourself.
要敢于维护自己的权利。
People are afraid to venture out for fear of sniper attacks
由于害怕狙击手，人们不敢冒险外出。
Mr. Harris has not been afraid to use language that many in his party despise.
哈里斯先生素来不怕使用为许多党内人士所不齿的言辞。
Martina Navratilova has never been afraid to speak her mind.
玛蒂娜·纳芙拉蒂洛娃从来不害怕说实话。
Ian was never afraid to take his coat off and muck in with everybody else.
伊恩从不怕甩开膀子和大家一起干活。
If your original request is denied, don't be afraid to pursue the matter.
如果你最初的请求遭到拒绝，不要害怕，要继续追问下去。
Don't be afraid to have this checked by a doctor — better safe than sorry!
不要害怕找医生检查一下——宁求稳妥以免后悔！
They are not afraid to tackle the issues or let the sparks fly when necessary.
他们不怕应对这些问题，也不怕必要时来一番激烈的争论。