fret
    n 1: agitation resulting from active worry; "don't get in a
         stew"; "he's in a sweat about exams" [syn: fret, stew,
         sweat, lather, swither]
    2: a spot that has been worn away by abrasion or erosion [syn:
       worn spot, fret]
    3: an ornamental pattern consisting of repeated vertical and
       horizontal lines (often in relief); "there was a simple fret
       at the top of the walls" [syn: fret, Greek fret, Greek
       key, key pattern]
    4: a small bar of metal across the fingerboard of a musical
       instrument; when the string is stopped by a finger at the
       metal bar it will produce a note of the desired pitch
    v 1: worry unnecessarily or excessively; "don't fuss too much
         over the grandchildren--they are quite big now" [syn:
         fuss, niggle, fret]
    2: be agitated or irritated; "don't fret over these small
       details"
    3: provide (a musical instrument) with frets; "fret a guitar"
    4: become or make sore by or as if by rubbing [syn: chafe,
       gall, fret]
    5: cause annoyance in
    6: gnaw into; make resentful or angry; "The injustice rankled
       her"; "his resentment festered" [syn: eat into, fret,
       rankle, grate]
    7: carve a pattern into
    8: decorate with an interlaced design
    9: be too tight; rub or press; "This neckband is choking the
       cat" [syn: choke, gag, fret]
    10: cause friction; "my sweater scratches" [syn: rub, fray,
        fret, chafe, scratch]
    11: remove soil or rock; "Rain eroded the terraces" [syn:
        erode, eat away, fret]
    12: wear away or erode [syn: fret, eat away]

Fret \Fret\, v. t. [OE. fretten to adorn, AS. fr[ae]twan,
   fr[ae]twian; akin to OS. fratah[=o]n, cf. Goth. us-fratwjan
   to make wise, also AS. fr[ae]twe ornaments, OS. fratah[imac]
   adornment.]
   To ornament with raised work; to variegate; to diversify.
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         Whose skirt with gold was fretted all about. --Spenser.
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         Yon gray lines,
         That fret the clouds, are messengers of day. --Shak.
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Fret \Fret\, v. i.
   1. To be worn away; to chafe; to fray; as, a wristband frets
      on the edges.
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   2. To eat in; to make way by corrosion.
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            Many wheals arose, and fretted one into another with
            great excoriation.                    --Wiseman.
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   3. To be agitated; to be in violent commotion; to rankle; as,
      rancor frets in the malignant breast.
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   4. To be vexed; to be chafed or irritated; to be angry; to
      utter peevish expressions.
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            He frets, he fumes, he stares, he stamps the ground.
                                                  --Dryden.
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Fret \Fret\ (fr[e^]t), n. [Obs.]
   See 1st Frith.
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Fret \Fret\, n.
   1. Ornamental work in relief, as carving or embossing. See
      Fretwork.
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   2. (Arch.) An ornament consisting of small fillets or slats
      intersecting each other or bent at right angles, as in
      classical designs, or at oblique angles, as often in
      Oriental art.
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            His lady's cabinet is a adorned on the fret,
            ceiling, and chimney-piece with . . . carving.
                                                  --Evelyn.
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   3. The reticulated headdress or net, made of gold or silver
      wire, in which ladies in the Middle Ages confined their
      hair.
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            A fret of gold she had next her hair. --Chaucer.
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   Fret saw, a saw with a long, narrow blade, used in cutting
      frets, scrolls, etc.; a scroll saw; a keyhole saw; a
      compass saw.
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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[aum]ta, Goth. fra-itan. See
   For, and Eat, v. t.]
   1. To devour. [Obs.]
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            The sow frete the child right in the cradle.
                                                  --Chaucer.
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   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.
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            With many a curve my banks I fret.    --Tennyson.
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   3. To impair; to wear away; to diminish.
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            By starts
            His fretted fortunes give him hope and fear. --Shak.
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   4. To make rough, agitate, or disturb; to cause to ripple;
      as, to fret the surface of water.
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   5. To tease; to irritate; to vex.
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            Fret not thyself because of evil doers. --Ps.
                                                  xxxvii. 1.
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Fret \Fret\, n.
   1. The agitation of the surface of a fluid by fermentation or
      other cause; a rippling on the surface of water.
      --Addison.
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   2. Agitation of mind marked by complaint and impatience;
      disturbance of temper; irritation; as, he keeps his mind
      in a continual fret.
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            Yet then did Dennis rave in furious fret. --Pope.
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   3. Herpes; tetter. --Dunglison.
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   4. pl. (Mining) The worn sides of river banks, where ores, or
      stones containing them, accumulate by being washed down
      from the hills, and thus indicate to the miners the
      locality of the veins.
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Fret \Fret\, n. [F. frette a saltire, also a hoop, ferrule,
   prob. a dim. of L. ferrum iron. For sense 2, cf. also E. fret
   to rub.]
   1. (Her.) A saltire interlaced with a mascle.
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   2. (Mus.) A short piece of wire, or other material fixed
      across the finger board of a guitar or a similar
      instrument, to indicate where the finger is to be placed.
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Fret \Fret\, v. t.
   To furnish with frets, as an instrument of music.
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