fret

See also FRET

English

Pronunciation

• IPA: /frɛt/
• Rhymes: -ɛt

Etymology 1

From Middle English freten, from Old English fretan (“to eat up, devour”), from Proto-Germanic *fraetanan (“to devour”), corresponding to for- +‎ eat. Cognate with Dutch vreten (“to devour, hog, wolf”), Low German freten (“to eat up”), German fressen (“to devour, gobble up, guzzle”), Danish fråse (“to gorge”), Swedish fräta (“to eat away, corrode, fret”), Gothic 𐍆𐍂𐌰𐌹𐍄𐌰𐌽 (fraitan), 𐍆𐍂𐌰-𐌹𐍄𐌰𐌽 (fra-itan, “to devour”).

Verb

fret (third-person singular simple present frets, present participle fretting, simple past fretted, fret, freet or frate, past participle fretted or fretten (usually in compounds))

1. (transitive, obsolete/poetic) To devour, consume; eat.

   Adam freet of that fruit, And forsook the love of our Lord. — Piers Ploughman.

2. (transitive and intransitive) To gnaw, consume, eat away.
3. (transitive) To cut through with fretsaw, create fretwork.
4. (transitive) To chafe or irritate; to worry.
5. (intransitive) To worry or be anxious.
6. (music) To press down the string behind a fret.

Translations

to devour, consume

French: dévorer (fr)

German: verschlingen (de)

to gnaw, consume, eat away

Finnish: nakertaa (fi), syövyttää (fi), kuluttaa (fi)

to cut through with fretsaw

French: ajourer (fr)

to chafe or irritate; to worry

Finnish: hermoilla, olla huolissaan

French: inquiéter (fr), tracasser (fr)

to worry or be anxious

Finnish: hermoilla, olla huolissaan French: s'inquiéter (fr), se tracasser (fr)

Latin: aestuō (la) Norwegian: fortvile

Etymology 2

Unknown

Noun

fret (plural frets)

1. (music) One of the pieces of metal/wood/plastic across the neck of a guitar or other musical instrument that marks note positions for fingering.
2. An ornamental pattern consisting of repeated vertical and horizontal lines (often in relief).

Derived terms

• fretboard

Translations

One of the pieces of metal/wood/plastic across the neck of a guitar

Chinese: Mandarin: 品 (zh) (pǐn) Finnish: otenauha German: Bund (de) m.

Greek: τάστο (el) Norwegian: bånd (no) n. Polish: próg (pl) m. Spanish: ceja (es) f.

An ornamental pattern consisting of repeated vertical and horizontal lines

Finnish: koristekuvio

Etymology 3

From Latin fretum (“strait, channel”)

Noun

fret (plural frets)

1. A strait; channel.

Related terms

• fretum
• transfrete

Etymology 4

Unknown

Noun

fret (plural frets)

1. (dialect, North East England) A fog or mist at sea or coming inland from the sea

Anagrams

• reft

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Dutch

Pronunciation

• audio

  (file)

Noun

fret m.

1. ferret, Mustela putorius furo

Anagrams

• erft, tref

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French

Etymology

From Middle Dutch vrecht, from Old Dutch *frēht, from Proto-Germanic *fra- + *aihtiz.

Noun

fret m. (plural frets)

1. (shipping) Freight, cargo fees: the cost of transporting cargo by boat.
2. (by extension) Rental of a ship, in whole or in part.
3. Freight, cargo, payload (of a ship).
   • 2008 March 9, Reuters, “L'ATV Jules Verne né sous une bonne étoile”,

     Il n'y aura plus alors que les vaisseaux Progress russes pour emmener du fret à bord de la station spatiale, et les Soyouz pour les vols habités.

     So there will only be the Russian Progress shuttles to take freight aboard the space station, and the Soyuz for manned flights.

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Gothic

Romanization

frēt

1. Romanization of 𐍆𐍂𐌴𐍄