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Fretfully; spitefully.

A sort of bar or movable nut, attached to the finger board of a guitar or other fretted instrument for the purpose of raising uniformly the pitch of all the strings.

To excite passion or anger in; to fret; to irritate. Her intercession chafed him. Shak.

low. -- Compass saw, a saw with a narrow blade, which will cut in a curve; -- called also fret saw and keyhole saw. -- Compass timber (Shipbuilding), curved or crooked timber. -- Compass window (Arch.), a circular bay window or oriel window. It has two or more magnetic needles permanently attached to a card, which mo…

To gnaw into; to wear away; to fret; to consume. [Obs.] Dr. R. Clerke.

Having the quality of fretting or vexing. Care is no cure, but corrosive. Shak. Corrosive sublimate (Chem.), mercuric chloride, HgCl2; so called because obtained by sublimation, and because of its harsh irritating action on the body tissue. Usually it is in the form of a heavy, transparent, crystalline substance, easil…

Characterized by, or in a state of, peevishness, fretfullness, or ill humor; as, a cross man or woman. He had received a cross answer from his mistress. Jer. Taylor.

Athwart; adversely; unfortunately; peevishly; fretfully; with ill humor.

The quality or state of being cross; peevishness; fretfulness; ill humor.

To trick, cheat, or impose on; to deceive. "Tricks to cully fools." Pomfret.

To sound, as a bell; to ring; to clang. The fretful tinkling of the convent bell evermore dinging among the mountain echoes. W. Irving.

To corrode; to fret; to chafe; to inflame. [Obs.] Minds exulcerated in themselves. Hooker.

A fretting; a festering; soreness. Hooker.

A state of anxious or fretful excitement; worry; vexation. [Obs.]

Fretful excitement. [Obs.] See Feaze.

een the great pastern bone and the metacarpus), or the tuft of hair. Their wounded steeds Fret fetlock deep in gore. Shak.

To rub; to wear off, or wear into shreds, by rubbing; to fret, as cloth; as, a deer is said to fray her head.

e wife or the woman was the more freakish of the two. L'Estrange. Freakish when well, and fretful when she's sick. Pope. -- Freak"ish*ly, adv. -- Freak"ish*ness, n.

To be in a rage; to be hot with anger. He frets, he fumes, he stares, he stamps the ground. Dryden. While her mother did fret, and her father did fume. Sir W. Scott. To tame away, to give way to excitement and displeasure; to storm; also, to pass off in fumes.

Choler; fretfulness; passion.