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Ok, scary = frightening (source: https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=define%3Ascary)

And we often hear "it is frightening" and "I am frightened because of frightening movie", but we never say "I am frightening".

SO, I think "it is scary" is correct while "I am scary" is incorrect. But why googling "I am scary" shows like 28000 results (https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=%22i+am+scary%22).

So, is "I am scary" sentence right or wrong?

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    If you're dressed up like Dracula, it's reasonable to say "I am scary".
    – Dan Bron
    Commented Aug 15, 2015 at 14:54
  • Feasibly this might be an acceptable question on English Language Learners, but I'm closevoting for lack of prior research. It's Too Basic for ELU. Commented Aug 15, 2015 at 16:11
  • 'I am purple.' is grammatical. Commented Aug 15, 2015 at 17:12

3 Answers 3

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So, is the sentence, "I am scary", right or wrong?

It is correct. It is a valid, meaningful grammatical sentence in English.

The person in the following picture could justifiably say the words, "I am scary."

enter image description here

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    wow, that's is a very scarily informative answer. After reading your answer, I think I will remember how to use "scary" forever
    – Tom
    Commented Aug 15, 2015 at 16:56
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In that case you are telling me that there are at least some that in general are somewhat afraid of you. You may tell what aspect I need to have some respect for like 'I am a scary driver'.

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"I am scary" means that I frighten people; "I am scared" means I, myself am frightened. However, there is a song "Plastic Jesus" by George Cromarty and Ed Rush, popularized in the 1967 film Cool Hand Luke:

I don't care if it rains or freezes
Long as I got my plastic Jesus
Sittin' on the dashboard of my car.
...
Goin' ninety, I ain't scary
'Cause I got the Virgin Mary
Assuring me that I won't go to hell.

It's clear that the meaning is "I ain't scared," and just as clear that the rhyme requires "scary." I don't know whether there's a southern (US) colloquialism behind it or not, but it shows up in rap music with the same meaning. Perhaps it's an elision of "scaredy" ("scared" + "-y"), which mostly appears in "scaredy-cat," one easily frightened.

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