as in irritable
tending towards or characterized by agitation or irritability
They finally lulled the fretful baby to sleep. I kept having fretful thoughts about what would happen if we couldn't pay our bills.
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Recent Examples of fretful
Despite the fretful retreat staged by most House Democrats, preliminary polling shows significant public support for Trump’s impeachment.
—
Chris Lehmann, Harpers Magazine, 20 Aug. 2025
Surf camp instructors noted that authorities have said the waters in Santa Monica Bay and elsewhere are safe, but some parents remain fretful.
—Daniel Miller, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2025
Performance Jones prods the start button and the four-cylinder power plant coughs grumpily into life, then settles to a fretful idle.
—Tim Pitt, Robb Report, 28 May 2025
Suddenly the Toronto crowd’s sound turned from festive to fretful.
—Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 6 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for fretful
Chris Lehmann, Harpers Magazine, 20 Aug. 2025
Surf camp instructors noted that authorities have said the waters in Santa Monica Bay and elsewhere are safe, but some parents remain fretful.
—Daniel Miller, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2025
Performance Jones prods the start button and the four-cylinder power plant coughs grumpily into life, then settles to a fretful idle.
—Tim Pitt, Robb Report, 28 May 2025
Suddenly the Toronto crowd’s sound turned from festive to fretful.
—Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 6 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for fretful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fretful
Adjective
-
Perhaps through feeling more irritable, more anxious, or wanting to isolate.—
Joy Harden Bradford,
AJC.com,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Had my symptoms maybe been put down to irritable bowel, for example, that could’ve been ongoing and ongoing and ongoing for a much longer period of time.—
Gina Kalsi,
PEOPLE,
2 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Although Amodei, who was leading the company’s safety team, had helped to pitch the deal to Bill Gates, many people on the team were anxious about it, fearing that Microsoft would insert provisions that overrode OpenAI’s ethical commitments.—
Ronan Farrow,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
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On the handful of occasions in each game between them when Jokic catches at the elbow and his teammates clear out, an anxious hush invariably falls over a buzzing arena.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
5 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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One of Altman’s batch mates in the first Y Combinator cohort was Aaron Swartz, a brilliant but troubled coder who died by suicide in 2013 and is now remembered in many tech circles as something of a sage.—
Ronan Farrow,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
-
In March, the Dallas City Council did not make a final decision on what to do about the troubled City Hall building.—
S.E. Jenkins,
CBS News,
6 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Flock Safety has faced strong criticism, with many worried about the public's privacy and security moving forward.—
Heath Kalb,
CBS News,
9 Apr. 2026
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Caroline never actually worried that Harry would cross a line with a patient.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Trump has been in an increasingly agitated state, lobbing barbs at the alliance for refusing to help clear the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf chokepoint where around 20% of the world’s oil flowed until Iran effectively shuttered it.—
Daniel DePetris,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Apr. 2026
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Equally agitated are Jedi Padawan Devon Izara (Gideon Adlon) and her Master, Eeko-Dio-Daki (Dennis Haysbert).—
Fran Ruiz,
Space.com,
6 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Behind yet another standout performance from Elliot Cadeau, who was named the Final Four’s most outstanding player, the Wolverines weathered a UConn run in the first half that had the massive throng of maize-and-blue fans in Indianapolis feeling nervous.—
Kyle Feldscher,
CNN Money,
7 Apr. 2026
-
King had been nervous about the casting process.—
Angelina Mazza,
Vulture,
7 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The call also revealed that many of the other cast members were apprehensive about working with Paul, citing her behavior.—
Rebecca Cohen,
NBC news,
6 Apr. 2026
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The atmosphere over the show in the UK has been apprehensive, with many in the UK industry skeptical that the series can justify the significant outlay Sky will have put down.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
22 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
While grunge seemed peevish, grim, defeatist, and dour—and extended the kind of us-vs.-them culture most famously centered by the indie rock of the ’80s and ’90s, Oasis was celebratory, communal, and democratic while exploring themes of alienation, escape, and fantasies of triumph.—
Corey Seymour,
Vogue,
28 July 2025
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Thousands of people — displaced by disaster, their past lives gone up in smoke — are hostage to the whims of a peevish president who always puts his feelings first and cares nothing for the greater good.—
Mark Z. Barabak,
Los Angeles Times,
22 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fretful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fretful. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026.
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