frazzle
[ fraz-uh l ]
/ ˈfræz əl /
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.
Nearby words
frazer, frazer, sir james george, frazier, frazier-spiller operation, frazil, frazzle, frazzled, frb, frc, frcd, frcm
Origin of frazzle
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for frazzle
British Dictionary definitions for frazzle
frazzle
/ (ˈfræzəl) /
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
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.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper