fretty

¹ American  

[fret-ee] / ˈfrɛt i /

adjective

frettier, frettiest

1. fretful; irritable; peevish.

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fretty ² American  

[fret-ee] / ˈfrɛt i /

adjective

Heraldry.

1. covered with criss-crossed and interlacing diagonal strips.

   argent, fretty sable.

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Etymology

Origin of fretty¹

First recorded in 1835–45; fret ¹ + -y ¹

Origin of fretty²

1555–65; < Middle French frette, derivative of frete trelliswork. See fret ², -ee

Example Sentences

Miss Lizzy, she gets fretty, but she still the same Miss Lizzy.

From "Girls Like Us" by Gail Giles

At the present time it is not usual to name the number of pieces, but merely the word fretty.

From The Manual of Heraldry; Fifth Edition Being a Concise Description of the Several Terms Used, and Containing a Dictionary of Every Designation in the Science by Anonymous

The small polar bears, meanwhile, satiated with exercise, air, and light, had begun to grow restive and fretty.

From The Far Horizon by Malet, Lucas

She said that people are always fretty and cross when they’re not well.

From Maida's Little Shop by Gillmore, Inez Haynes

Ecclesiastical vestments were often trimmed with heavy gold fringe, knotted "fretty wise," and the embroideries were further enriched with jewels and small plaques of enamel.

From Arts and Crafts in the Middle Ages A Description of Mediaeval Workmanship in Several of the Departments of Applied Art, Together with Some Account of Special Artisans in the Early Renaissance by Addison, Julia de Wolf Gibbs