1. (music) having frets
   "He played a beautiful melody on his fretted guitar"
    
2. Having a pattern of fretwork or latticework
   "The fretted wooden screen cast intricate shadows";
   - latticed, latticelike

1. Worry unnecessarily or excessively
   "don't fret too much over the grandchildren—they are quite big now";
   - fuss, niggle
    
2. Be agitated or irritated
   "don't fret over these small details";
   - stew [informal]
    
3. Cause annoyance in
   "The child's whining fretted his mother"
    
4. Gnaw into; make resentful or angry
   "The injustice fretted her";
   - eat into, rankle, grate
    
5. Become or make sore by or as if by rubbing
   "The tight collar fretted his neck";
   - chafe, gall
    
6. Be too tight; rub or press
   "This neckband is fretting the cat";
   - choke, gag
    
7. Cause friction
   "The rope fretted against the edge of the boat";
   - rub, fray, chafe, scratch
    
8. Remove soil or rock
   "The river had fretted away at the cliff face";
   - erode, eat away
    
9. Wear away or erode
   "The acid fretted the metal surface";
   - eat away
    
10. Provide (a musical instrument) with frets
    "fret a guitar"
     
11. Carve a pattern into
    "He fretted the guitar's fingerboard with precision"
     
12. Decorate with an interlaced design
    "The craftsman fretted the wooden panel with intricate patterns"

See also: reticular, reticulate

Type of: adjoin, adorn, annoy, beautify, bother, carve, chafe [archaic], compact, compress, constrict, contact, contract, corrode, damage, decorate, devil, embellish, fancify, furnish, get at [informal], get to, grace, gravel [US], irritate, meet, nark [Brit, slang], nettle, offer, ornament, press, provide, rag, render, rile, roil [N. Amer], rust, squeeze, supply, sweat [N. Amer, informal], tick off [informal], touch, vex, worry

Antonym: unfretted

Encyclopedia: Fret