FRETFUL Synonyms: 210 Similar and Opposite Words

fretful

adjective

Definition of fretful

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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Example Sentences

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Recent Examples of fretful The quintessential late-’80s teen, Ryder here plays a fretful mom. — Keith Phipps, Vulture, 27 Nov. 2025 But that doesn’t mean viewers won’t be increasingly exasperated by the ways the screenplay forces Knightley’s character into a clumsy, fretful investigation. — The New York Times, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025 Investors are fretful heading into the August payrolls report. — Sarah Min, CNBC, 3 Sep. 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

Just as Depp made to exit the stage, a haunting voice came over the speaker, eerily repeating the irritable man’s name.

— Angelique Jackson, Variety, 23 July 2026
Perelman said people who have weakened immune systems and those with irritable bowel disease may want to talk to their doctors before incorporating the foods into their diet.

— Devi Shastri, Los Angeles Times, 15 July 2026

Definition of irritable

Adjective

Kids who, like him, are growing up afraid and anxious because of domestic violence at home, and who need what Torre didn’t have — somewhere safe to go to for help.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 26 July 2026
In June, a group of anxious European policy researchers issued Europe 2031, a scenario in which civilization between the Urals and the Atlantic ends up at least functionally extinct.

— Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 25 July 2026

Definition of anxious

Adjective

In the theatre, Holzinger’s instructions were direct, never agitated or hostile, spoken into a microphone from the front row.

— Lauren Oyler, New Yorker, 20 July 2026
Sharks do not typically view humans as prey, but, as wildlife biologist Forrest Galante explained to OutKick Outdoors, a curious or agitated shark can still do plenty of damage with an exploratory bite.

— Amber Harding OutKick, FOXNews.com, 15 July 2026