fret

¹ American  

[fret] / frɛt /

verb (used without object)

fretted, fretting

1. to feel or express worry, annoyance, discontent, or the like.

   Fretting about the lost ring isn't going to help.

   Synonyms:

   rage, fume

2. to cause corrosion; gnaw into something.

   acids that fret at the strongest metals.

3. to make a way by gnawing, corrosion, wearing away, etc..

   The river frets at its banks until a new channel is formed.

4. to become eaten, worn, or corroded (often followed byaway ).

   Limestone slowly frets away under pounding by the wind and rain.

5. to move in agitation or commotion, as water.

   water fretting over the stones of a brook.

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verb (used with object)

fretted, fretting

1. to torment; irritate, annoy, or vex.

   You mustn't fret yourself about that.

   Synonyms:

   tease, goad, harass, worry

2. to wear away or consume by gnawing, friction, rust, corrosives, etc..

   the ocean fretting its shores.

   Synonyms:

   rub, grind, abrade, corrode, gnaw, erode

3. to form or make by wearing away a substance.

   The river had fretted an underground passage.

4. to agitate (water).

   Strong winds were fretting the channel.

noun

1. an irritated state of mind; annoyance; vexation.

   Synonyms:

   worry, agitation, harassment

2. Now Rare.

   1. a wearing away; erosion; corrosion.

   2. a worn or eroded place.

fret ² American  

[fret] / frɛt /

noun

1. an interlaced, angular design; fretwork.

2. an angular design of bands within a border.

3. Heraldry. a charge composed of two diagonal strips interlacing with and crossing at the center of a mascle.

4. a piece of decoratively pierced work placed in a clock case to deaden the sound of the mechanism.

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verb (used with object)

fretted, fretting

1. to ornament with a fret or fretwork.

fret ³ American  

[fret] / frɛt /

noun

1. any of the ridges of wood, metal, or string, set across the fingerboard of a guitar, lute, or similar instrument, which help the fingers to stop the strings at the correct points.

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verb (used with object)

fretted, fretting

1. to provide with frets.

fret ¹ British  

/ frɛt /

verb

1. to distress or be distressed; worry

2. to rub or wear away

3. to irritate or be irritated; feel or give annoyance or vexation

4. to eat away or be eaten away by chemical action; corrode

5. (intr) (of a road surface) to become loose so that potholes develop; scab

6. to agitate (water) or (of water) to be agitated

7. (tr) to make by wearing away; erode

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noun

1. a state of irritation or anxiety

2. the result of fretting; corrosion

3. a hole or channel caused by fretting

fret ² British  

/ frɛt /

noun

1. a repetitive geometrical figure, esp one used as an ornamental border

2. such a pattern made in relief and with numerous small openings; fretwork

3. heraldry a charge on a shield consisting of a mascle crossed by a saltire

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verb

1. (tr) to ornament with fret or fretwork

fret ³ British  

/ frɛt /

noun

1. any of several small metal bars set across the fingerboard of a musical instrument of the lute, guitar, or viol family at various points along its length so as to produce the desired notes when the strings are stopped by the fingers

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fret ⁴ British  

/ frɛt /

noun

1. short for sea fret

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Other Word Forms

• fretless
  adjective
• fretter
  noun

Etymology

Origin of fret¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English freten, freoten, vreten “to eat up, consume greedily, devour,” Old English fretan “to eat up, consume, devour”; cognate with Old Saxon fretan, Gothic fra-itan, Old High German frezzan ( German fressen “to feed, devour”), from Germanic fra-etan, equivalent to fra- for- ( def. ) + etan eat ( def. )

Origin of fret²

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English fret, frette, probably from Old French frete “trelliswork,” possibly from a Germanic source; compare Old English frættewian, frætwian, fretwian “to adorn, embroider, trim”

Origin of fret³

First recorded in 1490–1500; origin uncertain

Explanation

When you fret, you worry so much about something that it eats away at you. Many people fret about taking standardized tests, but really, they're nothing to sweat. Fret comes from the Old English word freton which means to devour like an animal. When you fret over something, it consumes your thoughts. If you tell your mother to not fret about you while you're at a sleepover camp, you're telling her to not worry about you too much. Sometimes it means to be agitated though. When you're waiting for the results of an exam, you might fret and wring your hands. In a totally unrelated meaning, a guitar player calls the raised lines on the neck of the guitar that help him play correctly frets.

Example Sentences

For how much Americans fret over the privacy settings on their phones and wearables, few ever seem to consider their TVs within the same radar.

From Slate • May 3, 2026

At the same time, if a potential borrower already has a high score, they don’t have to fret too hard, Ulzheimer said.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 25, 2026

And of course cabinet ministers will fret about this - they deal daily with their permanent secretary and senior civil servants and rely on them to deliver their agenda.

From BBC • Apr. 24, 2026

The sportswear retailer’s stock is down nearly 31% this year as investors fret over tighter margins and weak sales in China.

From Barron's • Apr. 15, 2026

Dad says not to fret, there will be other fish and we can take a picture then.

From "The Young Man and the Sea" by Rodman Philbrick

Related Words

• agonize
• bother
• brood
• carp
• chafe
• fume
• fuss
• grieve