adjective

fraught

FRAWT/frɔːt/

Filled with something troubling or worrying.

Their journey through the mountains is fraught with danger.

A tense crossing on a damaged narrow footbridge: an older woman grips the handrail and hesitates at a missing plank while a younger man braces behind her.

Etymology

fraughtMiddle Englishto load a ship with cargo

Originally describing a ship loaded with cargo, fraught came to describe something figuratively laden with trouble. In the selected sense, anxiety, tension, or danger supplies the burden.

In context

Untold History0:31

the journey was fraught with danger whichever way you went president lincoln knew that if the united states was to fulfill its true potential something needed to be done

Coast to Coast: America’s First Transcontinental Railroad

More examples

Her relationship with her father is fraught with tension.
The plan is fraught with practical difficulties.
Even a small mistake can be fraught with serious consequences.

Forms

fraught

Similar words

laden: Suggests being heavily loaded, not necessarily with something troubling.
burdened: Emphasizes being weighed down by problems or responsibilities.
rife: Emphasizes widespread occurrence or abundance rather than emotional weight.