fret

[ fret ]

/ frɛt /

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See synonyms for: fret / fretted / fretting / fretter on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object), fret·ted, fret·ting.

to feel or express worry, annoyance, discontent, or the like: Fretting about the lost ring isn't going to help.

to cause corrosion; gnaw into something: acids that fret at the strongest metals.

to make a way by gnawing, corrosion, wearing away, etc.:The river frets at its banks until a new channel is formed.

to become eaten, worn, or corroded (often followed by away): Limestone slowly frets away under pounding by the wind and rain.

to move in agitation or commotion, as water: water fretting over the stones of a brook.

verb (used with object), fret·ted, fret·ting.

to torment; irritate, annoy, or vex: You mustn't fret yourself about that.

to wear away or consume by gnawing, friction, rust, corrosives, etc.: the ocean fretting its shores.

to form or make by wearing away a substance: The river had fretted an underground passage.

to agitate (water): Strong winds were fretting the channel.

noun

an irritated state of mind; annoyance; vexation.

Now Rare.

a wearing away; erosion; corrosion.
a worn or eroded place.

OTHER WORDS FOR fret

1 fume, rage.

6 worry, harass, goad, tease.

7 erode, gnaw, corrode, abrade, grind; rub.

10 harassment, agitation, worry.

See synonyms for fret on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ

There's an ocean of difference between the way people speak English in the US vs. the UK. Are your language skills up to the task of telling the difference? Let's find out!

Question 1 of 7

True or false? British English and American English are only different when it comes to slang words.

true

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Origin of fret

First recorded before 900; Middle English freten, freoten, vreten “to eat up, consume greedily, devour,” Old English fretan “to eat up, consume, devour”; cognate with Old Saxon fretan, Gothic fra-itan, Old High German frezzan (German fressen “to feed, devour”), from Germanic fra-etan, equivalent to fra- for- + etan eat

OTHER WORDS FROM fret

fretter, noun

Words nearby fret

Fresnel biprism, Fresnel lens, Fresnel mirrors, Fresno, fress, fret, fretboard, fretful, fret saw, fretted, fretty

Other definitions for fret (2 of 3)

fret²

[ fret ]

/ frɛt /

noun

an interlaced, angular design; fretwork.

an angular design of bands within a border.

Heraldry. a charge composed of two diagonal strips interlacing with and crossing at the center of a mascle.

a piece of decoratively pierced work placed in a clock case to deaden the sound of the mechanism.

verb (used with object), fret·ted, fret·ting.

to ornament with a fret or fretwork.

Origin of fret

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English fret, frette, probably from Old French frete “trelliswork,” possibly from a Germanic source; compare Old English frættewian, frætwian, fretwian “to adorn, embroider, trim”

OTHER WORDS FROM fret

fretless, adjective

Other definitions for fret (3 of 3)

fret³

[ fret ]

/ frɛt /

noun

any of the ridges of wood, metal, or string, set across the fingerboard of a guitar, lute, or similar instrument, which help the fingers to stop the strings at the correct points.

verb (used with object), fret·ted, fret·ting.

to provide with frets.

Origin of fret

First recorded in 1490–1500; origin uncertain

OTHER WORDS FROM fret

fretless, adjective

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

How to use fret in a sentence

There is however a not-paranoid or market-driven reason to fret, albeit a VERY small one.
Ding Dong, You Have Lice|Kent Sepkowitz|October 31, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Even assuming Wyoming is safe, however, Republicans are right to fret.
Lean In, Liz Cheney, but Please Don’t Win That Senate Seat|Michelle Cottle|July 18, 2013|DAILY BEAST
In recent weeks, it has been fashionable (and even rational) to fret about the U.S. industrial economy.
Data Show U.S. Industry Shrugs off Sandy Effects|Daniel Gross|December 14, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Not to fret—The Daily Beast breaks down the talking points that will keep things civil while eating your turkey.
Thanksgiving Talking Points Guide: Guide to Hot-Button Topics, and Ones to Avoid|Nina Strochlic|November 21, 2012|DAILY BEAST

The “all clear” for many of the 10,000 possibly exposed campers will not be given till early October—a long time to fret.
Yosemite Hanta Virus: Nature Strikes Back|Kent Sepkowitz|September 3, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Rose, l. 4705, And through the fret full, read A trouthe fret full.'
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 (of 7) -- Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems|Geoffrey Chaucer
Hence were, in the next line, must mean to wear away, to fret; cf. note to 4712.
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 (of 7) -- Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems|Geoffrey Chaucer
Strange to say, to the astonishment of all but Lucy, young Mrs. Haggard continued to "fret."
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume II (of 3)|Charles James Wills
Davie would be well away, for he would fret about his grandmother, and that would do neither of them any good.
David Fleming's Forgiveness|Margaret Murray Robertson
And the woman laughed, and said, Truly, thou doest ill to fret thyself for such a matter.
The Cradle of Mankind|W.A. Wigram

British Dictionary definitions for fret (1 of 4)

fret¹

/ (frɛt) /

verb frets, fretting or fretted

to distress or be distressed; worry

to rub or wear away

to irritate or be irritated; feel or give annoyance or vexation

to eat away or be eaten away by chemical action; corrode

(intr) (of a road surface) to become loose so that potholes develop; scab

to agitate (water) or (of water) to be agitated

(tr) to make by wearing away; erode

noun

a state of irritation or anxiety

the result of fretting; corrosion

a hole or channel caused by fretting

Word Origin for fret

Old English fretan to eat; related to Old High German frezzan, Gothic fraitan, Latin peredere

British Dictionary definitions for fret (2 of 4)

fret²

/ (frɛt) /

noun

a repetitive geometrical figure, esp one used as an ornamental border

such a pattern made in relief and with numerous small openings; fretwork

heraldry a charge on a shield consisting of a mascle crossed by a saltire

verb frets, fretting or fretted

(tr) to ornament with fret or fretwork

Derived forms of fret

fretless, adjective

Word Origin for fret

C14: from Old French frete interlaced design used on a shield, probably of Germanic origin

British Dictionary definitions for fret (3 of 4)

fret³

/ (frɛt) /

noun

any of several small metal bars set across the fingerboard of a musical instrument of the lute, guitar, or viol family at various points along its length so as to produce the desired notes when the strings are stopped by the fingers

Derived forms of fret

fretless, adjective

Word Origin for fret

C16: of unknown origin

British Dictionary definitions for fret (4 of 4)

fret⁴

/ (frɛt) /

noun

short for sea fret

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

fret

OTHER WORDS FOR fret

Origin of fret

OTHER WORDS FROM fret

Words nearby fret

Other definitions for fret (2 of 3)

Origin of fret

OTHER WORDS FROM fret

Other definitions for fret (3 of 3)

Origin of fret

OTHER WORDS FROM fret

Words related to fret

How to use fret in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for fret (1 of 4)

Word Origin for fret

British Dictionary definitions for fret (2 of 4)

Derived forms of fret

Word Origin for fret

British Dictionary definitions for fret (3 of 4)

Derived forms of fret

Word Origin for fret

British Dictionary definitions for fret (4 of 4)