fraught

[ frawt ]

/ frɔt /

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See synonyms for fraught on Thesaurus.com

adjective

full of, accompanied by, or involving something specified, usually something unpleasant (often followed by with): a task fraught with danger; her pain-fraught body;emotionally fraught lyrics;a gathering fraught with joyful sounds.

characterized by or causing tension or stress: He has always been overweight, so his relationship with food is fraught.We are living in fraught times.

Archaic. filled or laden: ships fraught with precious wares.

noun

Scot. a load; cargo; freight (of a ship).

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Origin of fraught

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German vracht “freight money, freight”; compare Old High German frēht “earnings,” Old English ǣht “possession”; see freight

OTHER WORDS FROM fraught

o·ver·fraught, adjectiveun·fraught, adjective

Words nearby fraught

Fraud Squad, fraudster, fraudulent, Frauenfeld, fraughan, fraught, Fräulein, Fraunhofer, Fraunhofer lines, Fravashi, frawzey

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use fraught in a sentence

It’s a fraught category but may be helpful in understanding the merits of the show.
Baltimore exhibition of outsider art celebrates nature’s ‘excess’ with a wake-up call about pollution|Kelsey Ables|February 8, 2021|Washington Post
Our relationship was fraught on that show — we were either the best of friends or the worst of enemies over the course of even a day, because we were all these young, hormonal teen boys.
How ‘Freaks and Geeks’ went from misfit dramedy to cult classic, as told by its cast and creators: ‘People just like it so much that it thrusts itself from the grave’|Sonia Rao|January 27, 2021|Washington Post
Drawing comparisons across cultures and time periods is a fraught business.
Coup attempts usually usher in long stretches of democratic decline, data shows|Christopher Ingraham|January 22, 2021|Washington Post
Some say their students are too young to understand, while others say the subject is too fraught with emotion and political controversy to deal with at any length — or at all.
After Capitol attack, social studies and civics teachers struggle with real-time history lessons|Joe Heim, Valerie Strauss|January 19, 2021|Washington Post

It’s a fraught environment, not a place where any one person gets to make all the decisions.
House security chief said lawmaker wariness of military at Capitol drove his resistance to early request for National Guard|Rosalind Helderman, Beth Reinhard, Karoun Demirjian, Carol D. Leonnig|January 19, 2021|Washington Post
This year, with slightly more worldliness and way fewer drinks consumed, I could see the emotionally fraught underbelly.
The Craziest Date Night for Single Jews, Where Mistletoe Is Ditched for Shots|Emily Shire|December 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He was a!ways ready to tell a story that seemed fraught with significance.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days|David Freeman|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Due to the fraught relations between Turkey and Greece, he was safe.
The Unbelievable (True) Story of the World’s Most Infamous Hash Smuggler|Marlow Stern|November 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Yet, the relationship between American politics and la mode is more fraught.
How Oscar de la Renta Created First Lady Fashion|Raquel Laneri|October 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But it is their fraught emotional relationship that makes the story so explosive.
Michael Sheen’s Masterful Study of Sex and Insecurity|Caryn James|September 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The influence of Constantine seems to have been fraught with more of evil than of good to the new religion that he espoused.
The Catacombs of Rome|William Henry Withrow
To do so at any price frequently demands skill, and is always fraught with consequences of some kind to the listener.
A Cursory History of Swearing|Julian Sharman
How rapidly past times came thronging over my memory, fraught with joy and grief!
My Ten Years' Imprisonment|Silvio Pellico
Interplanetary commerce, if and when it begins, will be fraught with all of the dangers that accompany pioneering expeditions.
Spacewrecked on Venus|Neil R. Jones
The trip promised to be perilous and fraught with danger, as well as grueling and full of hardships.
Spacewrecked on Venus|Neil R. Jones

British Dictionary definitions for fraught

fraught

/ (frɔːt) /

adjective

(usually postpositive and foll by with) filled or charged; attendeda venture fraught with peril

informal showing or producing tension or anxietyshe looks rather fraught; a fraught situation

archaic (usually postpositive and foll by with) freighted

noun

an obsolete word for freight

Word Origin for fraught

C14: from Middle Dutch vrachten, from vracht freight

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

fraught

Origin of fraught

OTHER WORDS FROM fraught

Words nearby fraught

Words related to fraught

How to use fraught in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for fraught

Word Origin for fraught