- Fretted
- Fret Fret (fr[e^]t), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Fretted}; p. pr. &
vb. n. {Fretting}.] [OE. freten to eat, consume; AS. fretan,
for foretan; pref. for- + etan to eat; akin to D. vreten,
OHG. frezzan, G. fressen, Sw. fr["a]ta, Goth. fra-itan. See
{For}, and {Eat}, v. t.]
1. To devour. [Obs.]
[1913 Webster]
The sow frete the child right in the cradle. --Chaucer. [1913 Webster]
2. To rub; to wear away by friction; to chafe; to gall; hence, to eat away; to gnaw; as, to fret cloth; to fret a piece of gold or other metal; a worm frets the plants of a ship. [1913 Webster]
With many a curve my banks I fret. --Tennyson. [1913 Webster]
3. To impair; to wear away; to diminish. [1913 Webster]
By starts His fretted fortunes give him hope and fear. --Shak. [1913 Webster]
4. To make rough, agitate, or disturb; to cause to ripple; as, to fret the surface of water. [1913 Webster]
5. To tease; to irritate; to vex. [1913 Webster]
Fret not thyself because of evil doers. --Ps. xxxvii. 1. [1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.