frazzle

[fraz-uh l]Informal.

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verb (used with or without object), fraz·zled, fraz·zling.

to wear to threads or shreds; fray.

to weary; tire out: Those six eight-year-olds frazzled me.

noun

the state of being frazzled or worn-out.

a remnant; shred.

Origin of frazzle

1815–25; blend of fray² and fazzle, Middle English faselin to unravel, cognate with German faseln

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for frazzle

fray, rag, collapse, remnant, shred, prostration, enervation, lassitude, exhaust, poop, tire, tear, rip, wear, prostrate, tucker

Examples from the Web for frazzle

Historical Examples of frazzle

In the first few weeks my artist's ears and eyes and soul were hazed to a frazzle.
The Harbor
Ernest Poole
From school she went to college and worked herself to a frazzle.
The Harbor
Ernest Poole
He'll ketch the thief, for he's sartainly got Sherlock Holmes beat to a frazzle.
Rival Pitchers of Oakdale
Morgan Scott
"Well, next time don't stay till you're worn to a frazzle," she said.
In Apple-Blossom Time
Clara Louise Burnham
Face the supernatural—and it is beaten to a frazzle before the fight begins.
The Ghost Breaker
Paul Dickey

British Dictionary definitions for frazzle

frazzle

verb

informal to make or become exhausted or weary; tire out

a less common word for fray 2 (def. 1)

noun

informal the state of being frazzled or exhausted

a frayed end or remnant

to a frazzle informal absolutely; completely (esp in the phrase burnt to a frazzle)

Word Origin for frazzle

C19: probably from Middle English faselen to fray, from fasel fringe; influenced by fray ²

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

Word Origin and History for frazzle

c.1825, "to unravel" (of clothing), from East Anglian variant of 17c. fasel "to unravel, fray" (as the end of a rope), from Middle English facelyn "to fray" (mid-15c.), from fasylle "fringe, frayed edge," diminutive of Old English fæs "fringe." Related: Frazzled, frazzling. Cf. German Faser "thread, fiber, filament," Middle Dutch vese "fringe, fiber, chaff." Probably influenced in form by fray (v.). As a noun, from 1865, American English.