fret

1 of 6

verb (1)

fretted; fretting

transitive verb

1
a
: to eat or gnaw into : corrode
also : fray
The acid fretted the metal.
b
: rub, chafe
The harness strap was fretting the horse.
c
: to make by wearing away a substance
the stream fretted a channel
2
: to cause to suffer emotional strain : vex
don't you fret yourself about meJ. C. Powys
3
: to pass (time) in fretting
a poor player who struts and frets his hour upon the stageWilliam Shakespeare
4
: agitate, ripple
fret the surface of the lake

intransitive verb

1
a
: to eat into something
b
: to affect something as if by gnawing or biting : grate
the … urgent voice fretted at his nervesGraham Greene
2
a
: wear, corrode
Marble frets away due to the rain.
b
: chafe
His back where the harness rubbed began to fret.
3
a
: to become vexed or worried
fretting over the high cost of feeding their familiesVance Packard
b
of running water : to become agitated
a brook fretting over rocks

fret

2 of 6

noun (1)

1
a
: the action of wearing away : erosion
b
: a worn or eroded spot
2
: an agitation of mind : irritation

fret

3 of 6

verb (2)

fretted; fretting

transitive verb

1
a
: to decorate with interlaced designs
b
: to form a pattern upon
2
: to enrich with embossed or pierced carved patterns

fret

4 of 6

noun (2)

1
: an ornamental network
especially : a medieval metallic or jeweled net for a woman's headdress
2
: an ornament or ornamental work often in relief consisting of small straight bars intersecting one another in right or oblique angles

Illustration of fret

Illustration of fret
  • fret 2

fret

5 of 6

noun (3)

: one of a series of ridges fixed across the fingerboard of a stringed musical instrument (such as a guitar)
fretless adjective
fretted adjective

fret

6 of 6

verb (3)

fretted; fretting

transitive verb

: to press (the strings of a stringed instrument) against the frets

Did you know?

Fret and Eating

The meat-and-potatoes meaning of fret is "to eat." The verb is used literally, as in "Moths fretted the clothing," but more often figuratively to describe actions that corrode or wear away. A river "frets away" at its banks, or something might be said to be "fretted out" with time or age. Fret also applies to emotional experiences so that something that "eats away at someone" is "fretting the heart or mind."

Examples of fret in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Last week: 5 Results: lost at UNLV 62-58 NET ranking: No. 19 Next up: vs. Boise State (Friday) Comment: No reason to fret, yet. Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 6 Mar. 2024 But stock market analysts say not to fret and to hold tight. Nicole Goodkind, CNN, 5 Mar. 2024 Promising and Scary: In Michigan, a presidential battleground state, electric vehicles are emerging as a contested piece of the economic future: Is the shift to such vehicles a fresh source of dynamism and paychecks, or the latest reason to fret about the fate of American factory workers? Tara Siegel Bernard, New York Times, 2 Mar. 2024 Manhattan business owners are fretting about the impact on the local economy. Philip Marcelo, Fortune, 29 Feb. 2024 Zandi especially frets about an unforeseen banking crisis like the one that felled Silicon Valley Bank and other regional banks, a year ago. Paul Davidson, USA TODAY, 23 Feb. 2024 Weight-loss shots have been a boon for drugmakers Eli Lilly & Co. and Novo Nordisk A/S, but food brands are fretting about the prospect of a less hungry customer base. Madison Muller, Fortune, 21 Feb. 2024 Bulls simply could not get in gear as traders fretted about technology stock valuations. Jon Markman, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2024 The supervisor’s son Klaus (Theo Dahl) is insecure about his across-the-board Bs, fretting that mediocre grades will steer him into the life of an underachiever. David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Feb. 2024
Noun
At the clinic, Ava frets about delivering the news to Tara that the family farm is gone. Sara Netzley, EW.com, 7 Sep. 2023 For instance, dogs that are frightened may attempt to flee, fight, fret and fidget, or freeze. Kff Health News, Orange County Register, 25 Feb. 2024 The ropey veins in James Hetfield’s throat threatened to burst through his skin, Kirk Hammett’s fingers were a blur on the guitar frets and no one can pull a stank face quite like Lars Ulrich while relentlessly shredding on the drums. Spin Staff, SPIN, 21 Dec. 2023 The earthworms beneath the soil haven’t the least idea of the frets that pluck at my heart. Danny Heitman, The Christian Science Monitor, 29 Nov. 2023 But fret not, because there's a solution that can help reduce excessive hair loss in dogs – the best dog shedding supplement. Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 31 July 2023 Policymakers worldwide fret over China’s ambition to control entire supply chains—for instance, the minerals inside EV batteries. Carlton Reid, WIRED, 14 Oct. 2023 The Player Plus series from Fender is among the best bang for your buck, with solid electronics and smoothly finished necks and fret wire. WIRED, 28 Oct. 2023 Most likely nobody at all would die on Reno’s streets between now and tomorrow morning, so why fret? William T. Vollmann, Harper's Magazine, 16 Oct. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fret.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1) and Noun (1)

Middle English, to devour, fret, from Old English fretan to devour; akin to Old High German frezzan to devour, ezzan to eat — more at eat

Verb (2)

Middle English, back-formation from fret, fretted adorned, interwoven, from Anglo-French fretté, past participle of fretter to tie, probably from Vulgar Latin *firmitare, from Latin firmus firm

Noun (3)

perhaps from Middle French frete ferrule, from freter

First Known Use

Verb (1)

12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Noun (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (3)

circa 1500, in the meaning defined above

Verb (3)

1602, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of fret was in the 12th century

Podcast

Dictionary Entries Near fret

Cite this Entry

“Fret.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fret. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

fret

1 of 4 verb
fretted; fretting
1
: to make or become worried
fret over a problem
2
: to eat into or wear away
adobe fretted clean by wind and sand

fret

2 of 4 noun
: an irritated or worried state
in a fret

fret

3 of 4 noun
: an ornamental design of short lines or bars

fret

4 of 4 noun
: one of a series of ridges fixed across the fingerboard of a stringed musical instrument
fretless
ˈfret-ləs
adjective
fretted
ˈfret-əd
adjective
Etymology

Verb

Old English fretan "to devour"

Noun

Middle English fret, fretted "interwoven," from early French fretté, past participle of fretter "to tie"

Noun

perhaps from early French frete "connecting sleeve"

More from Merriam-Webster on fret

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!