Was he afraid, he was asked. "Afraid of what?" he retorted.是什么意思？

Was he afraid, he was asked. "Afraid of what?" he retorted.

有人问他是否害怕。“害怕什么？”他反问道。

was

v. 用来表示某人或某物即主语本身，用来表示某人或某物属于某一群体或有某种性质（ be的过去式 ），在，存在，不受干扰；

例句
There was a terrible sadness in her eyes...
她眼神中流露出深深的悲伤。

he

pron. 他，它，一个人；n. 雄性动物；

例句
Logic had prevailed and he had abandoned the idea.
最终理智占了上风，他打消了那个念头。

afraid

adj. 害怕的，担心的，恐怕，畏惧，害怕；

例句
I am afraid the court may not adjourn until three or even later.
我担心法庭要到3点或更晚时才会休庭。

asked

v. 问( ask的过去式和过去分词 )，询问，要求，请求；

例句
The defendant asked for 21 similar offences to be taken into account...
被告要求考虑到类似的21起违法行为的情况。

of

prep. 关于，属于…的，由…制成；aux. 助动词 [非标准用语、方言] =have [主用于虚拟语气]；

例句
He did have a real knowledge of the country...
他对该国的确知之甚多。

what

pron. （用以询问某人或某事物的词）什么，多少，…的事物；adj. …的（事物或人）；adv. （用于感叹句中）；int. （用以表示不相信或惊奇），（用以表示未听清楚对方说的话）；

例句
How big is the abyss between what you think you are and what you actually are?
你对自己的认识和真实的你之间差别到底有多大？

retorted

v. 反驳( retort的过去式和过去分词 )；

例句
Chang Su - su retorted hastily , looking slightly belligerent.
张素素又抢着反驳, 脸色变了.