Meaning
Very afraid, timid, or easily frightened — the reduplication of 'fraid' (afraid) intensifying it. A 'fraid-fraid' person is nervous, cowardly, or jumpy, scared of the dark, of duppies, or of taking any risk. It can be said of a genuinely timid soul or, teasingly, of someone being a scaredy-cat over something harmless.
Examples
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Him too fraid-fraid fi walk home inna di dark.
He's too scared to walk home in the dark.
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Nuh be so fraid-fraid, a nuh nuttn.
Don't be such a scaredy-cat; it's nothing.
-
Di fraid-fraid pickney nuh want pass di cotton tree.
The frightened child doesn't want to pass the cotton tree.
Origin
Reduplication of 'fraid' (afraid) intensifying to 'very afraid/timid'. See [[frighten]], [[goose-skin]].
How it’s used
Very afraid/timid/easily frightened (a scaredy-cat). See [[frighten]], [[coward-man-keep-sound-bone]].