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fretwork

[ fret-wurk ]

/ ˈfrɛtˌwɜrk /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR fretwork ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

ornamental work consisting of interlacing parts, especially work in which the design is formed by perforation.

any pattern of dark and light, such as that of perforated fretwork.

Origin of fretwork

First recorded in 1595–1605; fret² + work

Words nearby fretwork

fretboard, fretful, fretted, fretting, fretty, fretwork, freud, freud, sigmund, freudian, freudian slip, freund's adjuvant

Example sentences from the Web for fretwork

Dicksonia has a pretty leaf of fretwork, and will grow three feet in length, though it is usually much shorter.

The Garden, You, and I |Mabel Osgood Wright
In the window that had fretwork over it was arranged a bank of flowers in flower-pots.

At the Court of the Amr |John Alfred Gray
The needlewoman has preferred to sew over the raw edges of the stuff, and give us a perfect piece of Fretwork in linen.

Art in Needlework |Lewis F. Day
The fretwork is most delicate in its livery, and the many images, though representing grotesque figures, are admirably carved.

A Popular Account of the Manners and Customs of India |Charles Acland

Rajah Darpore was leaning lazily against the fretwork marble balustrade just where the ghat steps dipped down under the water.

The Three Sapphires |W. A. Fraser

British Dictionary definitions for fretwork

fretwork

/ (ˈfrɛtˌwɜːk) /

noun

decorative geometrical carving or openwork

any similar pattern of light and dark

ornamental work of three-dimensional frets