fretting
Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)
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.] [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]
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onerousadjective
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