fretful.

Uneasily worried in a way that produces small complaints or restless irritation.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• a fretful night
• a fretful child
• grow fretful

On the page

She spent a fretful night checking the weather forecast.

His fretful questions exhausted the guide before the climb began.

The baby grew fretful whenever the unfamiliar alarm sounded.

Usage notes

Primary category: fear. Milder than panic; combines apprehension with fussing or irritability. For infants, discomfort rather than fear may be the cause. Gradable with more/most; no inflectional endings normally needed.