fray

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“
So eager for the fray are the warriors, so well organised, so completely devoted to the self-sacrificing duty of protecting the community, that two distinct methods of advance and attack are exercised forthwith in the midst of what appears to be calamitous confusion.

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Definitions (29)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (8)

  1. noun A scuffle; a brawl. See Synonyms at brawl.
  2. noun A heated dispute or contest.
  3. transitive verb Archaic To alarm; frighten.
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Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (12)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (6)

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Examples (50)

  • To remove Athens from the fray was an urgent priority - but it would prove costly. —  David Gemmell - (Lion of Macedon 01) Lion Of Macedon v1.0 (1990).htm
  • Our men appear eager for the fray, and I pray they may be as successful in the fight as they are anxious for one. —  The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Citizen-soldier, by John Beatty.
  • Also entering the fray is a vivacious ballerina named Liz Park (Korean actress Ara) who befriends Subaru and gets her involved in breakdancing.
  • What kept me rooted and out of the fray was my parents 'low tolerance for that kind of nonsense. —  A Stepmom's Say
  • Obama's absence from the fray is also allowing hostile voices to exploit the vacuum. —  Indybay newswire
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This word has been looked up 157 times.

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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

tattered ·  silken ·  woolen ·  threadbare ·  scarlet ·  plaid ·  sodden ·  rag ·  greasy ·  dirty ·  shabby ·  loose

Used in the same contextWord Family

fray:   frayed ·  fraying
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (6)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (2)

  1. Middle English frai, shortening of affrai; see affray.
  2. Middle English fraien, to wear, bruise, from Old French fraier, to rub, from Latin fricāre.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (4)

  1. from Middle English fray, contention, dispute, assault, fear; an abbreviation, by apheresis, of affray, n., q. v.
  2. from Middle English frayen, fraien, contend, dispute, fight, put in fear; an abbreviation, by apheresis, of affray, v., q. v.
  3. from Old French frayer, froyer, frier, grate upon, rub, French frayer = Provencal Spanish fregar = Portuguese esfregar = Italian fregare, from Latin fricare, rub: see friction.
  4. from fray, v. t.
 

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