FRETTED Synonyms: 94 Similar and Opposite Words

fretted

verb

past tense of fret

as in eroded

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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as in wore

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 worried

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 irritated

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 fretted Cybersecurity stocks dropped for a second day on Monday as investors fretted over new artificial intelligence security tools that threaten to displace the sector's longstanding business models. —

Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 24 Feb. 2026 Ahead of the splashy announcement, her government staffers privately fretted over its political nature potentially opening the city up to liability, according to Banuelos. —

Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 16 Feb. 2026 Nationally, moderate factions of the party have fretted over the calls — like those echoing from the Colorado Capitol’s stairs — to abolish ICE outright. —

Seth Klamann, Denver Post, 8 Feb. 2026 The outperformance is relatively new for investors who once fretted that Alphabet had been surpassed in technological prowess by startups like OpenAI, which would erode Google’s huge market share in internet search. —

Bloomberg, Mercury News, 4 Feb. 2026 Ahead of the bill’s passage, county leaders openly fretted about the possible damage that might come from giving such free rein to the constables. —

John Lomax V, Houston Chronicle, 30 Jan. 2026 Stock-watchers cheered a market boom, and fretted about a bubble. —

Mark Niquette, Arkansas Online, 15 Dec. 2025 Stock-watchers cheered a market boom, and fretted about a bubble. —

Mark Niquette, Fortune, 12 Dec. 2025 Rather than sparking a larger war, as some analysts fretted, Soleimani’s assassination permanently set back Iran’s proxies. —

Ray Takeyh, Foreign Affairs, 4 Dec. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for fretted

Verb

Just to the left of Trouvelot lies another large basin that appears even older and more heavily eroded, with its rim almost completely worn away.

— Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 6 Mar. 2026
On her island home in the South Pacific archipelago of Vanuatu, the shoreline has visibly retreated within her short lifetime, with beaches eroded, coastal trees uprooted and some homes now barely 3 feet from the sea at high tide.

— CBS News, CBS News, 5 Mar. 2026