fret
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\n \n Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 2, 2024 is:\n \n
\n \n\n fret • \\FRET\\ • verb
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To fret is to worry or be concerned.
\n\n// I was sure we wouldn\u2019t get there in time, but they told me not to fret.
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\u201cMany communal laundry spaces have rules posted, but over time, they can get lost, forgotten or ignored. If you find yourself in uncertain waters about how to be a good neighbor, don\u2019t fret. We asked laundry and etiquette experts for their best tips on how to handle some of the most common faux pas.\u201d \u2014 Sophia Solano, The Washington Post, 22 Aug. 2024
\n \n \n\n Did you know?
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Fret not about being unfamiliar with the history of the verb fret; we\u2019ve got something for you to chew on. While fretting today usually involves a concern that is figuratively eating at someone, fret has older senses that apply to literal eating. Fret comes from the Old English verb fretan, \u201cto devour,\u201d which shares an ancestor with another verb, etan, the ancestor of eat. In centuries past, animals\u2014or monsters, in the case of Grendel\u2014were said to fret, as were substances that corrode, or eat away, at other substances. But it wasn\u2019t long before fret was also applied to emotional experiences, as when someone frets over an all-consuming thought or trouble. While fret still carries the meanings of \u201cto corrode,\u201d \u201cto fray,\u201d and \u201cto chafe,\u201d among others, one is most likely to encounter its more angsty sense of \u201cto worry or be concerned.\u201d
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