FRETS Synonyms: 113 Similar and Opposite Words

frets 1 of 2

noun

plural of fret

as in panics

a state of nervous or irritated concern one of my customers always gets into a fret if I'm so much as 15 minutes late delivering his newspaper

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frets

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of fret

as in erodes

to consume or wear away gradually over the span of thousands of years, the annual spring runoff fretted the rock, forming a deep channel

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in wears

to damage or diminish by continued friction don't let the girth fret the horse's belly or you won't be able to ride him

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as in worries

to experience concern or anxiety don't fret over whether it will be sunny tomorrow, as there's nothing we can do about it

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as in irritates

to make sore by continued rubbing the stiff, starchy collar was fretting my neck, and I couldn't wait to change out of that costume

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of frets

Noun

This mandolin is quite different from my flat-back, the strings closer together, the arm shorter, the frets more tightly spaced. —

Tim Parks, New Yorker, 11 Apr. 2026 Melbourne cafe owner Michael Hannah looks over the half-empty lunchtime tables and frets how much worse things will be when the state government enshrines a world-first right to work-from-home later this year. —

Joe Flynn, Bloomberg, 1 Apr. 2026 But through music, Thundercat has been able to funnel his emotions into frets and harness his natural singing prowess. —

Kyle Eustice, SPIN, 1 Apr. 2026 The car, a 1970 Cadillac Eldorado that was modified to include strings and frets, was driven once by Elvis Presley during a concert in Las Vegas. —

Dewayne Bevil, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 Jan. 2026 Yet Stastny frets about the electronic future. —

Michael Weissenstein, Fortune, 28 Dec. 2025 At the time, Gibson, the guitar company, had a high-end outlet at the adjacent Opry Mills Mall, and Hull stopped in with her father to get some new frets on her mandolin. —

Josh Crutchmer, Rolling Stone, 26 Dec. 2025 But the good-neighbor vibe is starting to sour as Colombia frets about river access. —

John Otis, NPR, 7 Sep. 2025 As Kirk frets about commanding a hybrid Farragut–Enterprise (but mostly Enterprise) crew, Spock, Uhura, Scotty, and Chapel arrive with an assessment of the situation. —

Keith Phipps, Vulture, 14 Aug. 2025

Verb

Baelor’s brother, Maekar — who actually delivered the killing blow — also frets over how Duncan has changed the course of history. —

Noel Murray, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2026 Every generation finds new ways to parent, and every generation frets about it. —

Russell Shaw, The Atlantic, 2 Nov. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for frets

Verb

Here in the muddy middle is where confidence erodes, not because the writer lacks ability but because the process becomes complex.

— JD Barker, Rolling Stone, 8 May 2026
The pattern held up consistently — later-day caffeine pushes sleep back and erodes its quality.

— Samantha Agate, Sacbee.com, 5 May 2026