fraught
Americanadjective
-
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.
-
Archaic. filled or laden.
ships fraught with precious wares.
noun
adjective
-
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
-
archaic freighted
noun
Other Word Forms
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”; see freight
Explanation
Fraught means filled with something — often something bad. Your Thanksgiving was fraught with awkward moments when your family saw your blue hair, and it only got worse when you told them you'd quit law school to join the circus. Fraught is related to the word freight, and comes from the Middle English fraughten, meaning "to load with cargo." Think of a cargo ship loaded up with freight for a journey — it's full of supplies, just like Thanksgiving was filled with — or fraught with — awkward moments. Fraught can also describe a situation filled with distress. If relations between two countries are fraught, they are not getting along with each other.
Vocabulary lists containing fraught
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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.
At the current fraught moment, the country needs men and women like Lindsey Graham to step forward.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
Decisions about selling, repairs, property taxes, insurance and maintenance can become fraught.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 22, 2026
He’s having a fraught phone conversation with his mother, who’s upset to learn that the reason his boyfriend can’t pick him up is that they’ve broken up.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
No issue facing Southeast Asia's foreign ministers has been more fraught than how to reintegrate Myanmar, a member state formally excluded from such summits since its military junta seized power in 2021.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
The seconds between them were fraught with challenge.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
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.
