fraught
Americanadjective
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full of, accompanied by, or involving something specified, usually something unpleasant (often followed bywith ): her pain-fraught body; a gathering fraught with joyful sounds.
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: We are living in fraught times.
He has always been overweight, so his relationship with food is fraught.
We are living in fraught times.
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Archaic. filled or laden.
ships fraught with precious wares.
noun
adjective
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filled or charged; attended
a venture fraught with peril
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informal showing or producing tension or anxiety
she looks rather fraught
a fraught situation
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archaic freighted
noun
Other Word Forms
- overfraught adjective
- unfraught adjective
Etymology
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”; freight
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Such an operation would be extremely challenging and fraught with danger, according to military experts and former US defence officials who spoke to the BBC.
From BBC
Young Clare had rested his head on the pavement, fraught with the revelation that he would be alone in the Afterlife.
From Literature
Monday’s appearance came as Powell navigates one of the more legally fraught endings to a Fed chair’s tenure in modern history.
From Barron's
No country has been more central to Apple's rise -- or more fraught for its future -- than China, with Cook cementing ties to the Asian superpower through regular appearances at local Apple stores and official visits.
From Barron's
With a new management team in place, Steve Russell now leads a trust fraught with problems - most significantly around breast cancer care.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
