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An early instance of the word fraught occurs in the 14th century poem Richard Coer de Lion, about England’s King Richard I. “The drowmound was so hevy fraught / That unethe myght it saylen aught” is about a large fast-sailing ship so heavily fraught—that is, loaded—that it can barely sail. The use is typical for the time; originally, something that was fraught was laden with freight. For centuries, fraught continued to be used in relation to loaded ships, but its use was eventually broadened for situations that are heavy with tension, emotion, or some other weighty characteristic.
Examples of fraught in a Sentence
Kathleen Wong, USA Today, 18 May 2026
For the global health community, this outbreak also arrives at a fraught moment with international health funding is under pressure.
—Jesse Pines, Forbes.com, 18 May 2026
His past films have covered the Hungarian Uprising, the fraught lead-up to WWI and, in 2015’s excruciating Son of Saul, life and death in a Nazi concentration camp.
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 17 May 2026
River, stream, lake, ocean, or pond–Southerners know that sometimes the best balm for a fraught mind or stressful season is a quick trip to the nearest body of water.
—Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 16 May 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Fraught.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fraught. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
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