[1] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

fretful \fret"ful\, a. see 2d fret.
   disposed to fret; ill-humored; peevish; angry; in a state of
   vexation; as, a fretful temper. -- fret"fully, adv. --
   fret"fulness, n.

   syn: peevish; ill-humored; ill-natured; irritable; waspish;
        captious; petulant; splenetic; spleeny; passionate;
        angry.

   usage: fretful, peevish, cross. these words all
          indicate an unamiable working and expression of
          temper. peevish marks more especially the inward
          spirit: a peevish man is always ready to find fault.
          fretful points rather to the outward act, and marks a
          complaining impatience: sickly children are apt to be
          fretful. crossness is peevishness mingled with
          vexation or anger.
          1913 webster
see also:
fret fret"fully fret"fulness fretful peevish cross 

[2] : WordNet (r) 2.0

fretful
     adj 1: unable to relax or be still; "a constant fretful stamping of
            hooves"; "itchy for excitement"; "a restless child"
            syn: fidgety, itchy, restless
     2: habitually complaining; "a whining child" syn: querulous,
         whiney, whininga, whiny
see also:
fidgety itchy restless querulous whiney whininga 
whiny 

[3] : Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

93 moby thesaurus words for "fretful":
   jeremianic, abrupt, agitated, antsy, antsy-pantsy, anxious,
   bad-tempered, breathless, bustling, captious, carping, catty,
   caviling, chafing, choleric, complaining, contrary, crabby, cranky,
   critical, cross, curt, disagreeable, eager, edgy, excited,
   faultfinding, fidgety, fluttering, fluttery, fractious, fretting,
   fussing, fussy, grumpy, hasty, hopped-up, howling, huffy,
   ill-natured, ill-tempered, impatient, impetuous, in a lather,
   in a stew, in a sweat, irascible, irritable, jumpy, lamentive,
   moanful, moody, mournful, nagging, naggy, on edge, peevish,
   perverse, pettish, petulant, plaintive, plangent, puling,
   querulous, resentful, restive, restless, short, short-tempered,
   shrewish, snappish, sorrowful, splenetic, squirming, squirmy,
   sulky, testy, tetchy, touchy, turbulent, ululant, uneasy,
   unpatient, unquiet, unsettled, vexed, vixenish, vixenly, wailful,
   waspish, whimpering, whining, whiny

Fretful >> F Words
Fretful, definition of term: Fretful
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