"The drowmound was so hevy fraught / That unethe myght it saylen aught." That verse, from the 14th-century poem Richard Coer de Lion, says that a large ship (a dromond) was so heavily loaded that it could barely sail: originally, something that was "fraught" was laden with freight. Fraught came to Middle English from the Middle Dutch or Middle Low German noun vracht, which meant "load" and which is also the source of freight. For centuries, fraught continued to be used of loaded ships, but its use was eventually broadened for situations that are heavy with tension or some other weighty characteristic.
Adjective every room in my childhood home is fraught with memories had a fraught meeting with his estranged wife to discuss a divorce settlement
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
The ceremony showcased the generally harmonious but occasionally fraught intersection of British royalty and government. Mark Landler, BostonGlobe.com, 12 Sep. 2022 Still, there’s obvious appeal, despite the fraught environment for political speech. Brian Steinberg, Variety, 12 Sep. 2022 Across the country, people like Jones are stumbling through inscrutable election processes fraught with poor ballot design and rigid registration rules. Annie Waldman, ProPublica, 12 Sep. 2022 Weisselberg's guilty plea set off a series of fraught exchanges between defense attorneys and prosecutors about deadlines related to declaring which experts and evidence will be usable at trial. Graham Kates, CBS News, 12 Sep. 2022 The police crackdown on such protests has raised questions about freedom of speech during this fraught period for the United Kingdom. Annabelle Timsit, Washington Post, 12 Sep. 2022 But to get to this euphoric point, there was an arduous, dangerous and emotionally fraught journey, even beyond the perilous boat ride. Alex Ritman, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Sep. 2022 The United States and Germany in particular have raised a fraught question: Could the Dutch keep drilling in Groningen for Europe’s greater good? Anthony Faiola, Anchorage Daily News, 9 Sep. 2022 Bhavya Dore’s reporting on the long-term consequences of a fraught adoption pipeline between Sri Lanka and Western Europe is tender, eloquent, and nuanced.Longreads, 8 Sep. 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
Adjective
Middle English, from past participle of fraughten — see fraughtentry 3
Noun
Middle English, freight, load, from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German vracht, vrecht