1 ADJ [ADJ n] A fresh thing or amount replaces or is added to a previous thing or amount. □ He asked Strathclyde police, which carried out the original investigation, to make fresh inquiries. □ I need a new challenge and a fresh start somewhere else.
2 ADJ Something that is fresh has been done, made, or experienced recently. □ There were no fresh car tracks or footprints in the snow. □ With the memory of the bombing fresh in her mind, Eleanor became increasingly agitated.
3 ADJ Fresh food has been picked or produced recently, and has not been preserved, for example by being frozen or put in a tin. □ …locally caught fresh fish. □ …fresh fruit.
4 ADJ If you describe something as fresh , you like it because it is new and exciting. □ These designers are full of fresh ideas. □ …a fresh image.
5 ADJ If you describe something as fresh , you mean that it is pleasant, bright, and clean in appearance. □ Gingham fabrics always look fresh and pretty.
6 ADJ [usu ADJ n] If something smells, tastes, or feels fresh , it is clean or cool. □ The air was fresh and for a moment she felt revived.
7 ADJ Fresh water is water that is not salty, for example the water from rivers or lakes.
8 ADJ If you say that the weather is fresh , you mean that it is fairly cold and windy. □ It was a fine, fresh summer morning. □ Outside the breeze was fresh and from the north.
9 ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] If you feel fresh , you feel full of energy and enthusiasm. □ It's vital we are as fresh as possible for those matches.
10 ADJ Fresh paint is not yet dry. [AM ] in BRIT, use wet 11 ADJ If you are fresh from a particular place or experience, you have just come from that place or you have just had that experience. You can also say that someone is fresh out of a place. □ [+ from ] I returned to the office, fresh from Heathrow. □ [+ out of ] From what I've heard he started wheeling and dealing fresh out of college.
fresh- /fre ʃ-/ COMB [ADJ n] Fresh- is added to past participles in order to form adjectives which describe something as having been recently made or done. □ …a vase of fresh-cut flowers. □ …a meadow of fresh-mown hay.
fre sh ai r N‑UNCOUNT [oft the N ] You can describe the air outside as fresh air , especially when you mean that it is good for you because it does not contain dirt or dangerous substances. □ 'Let's take the baby outside,' I suggested. 'We all need some fresh air.'
fresh|en /fre ʃ ə n/ (freshens , freshening , freshened ) VERB If the wind freshens , it becomes stronger and colder. □ [V ] The wind had freshened.
▸ freshen up
1 PHRASAL VERB If you freshen something up , you make it clean and pleasant in appearance or smell. □ [V P n] A thorough brushing helps to freshen up your mouth. □ [V n P ] My room needed a lick of paint to freshen it up.
2 PHRASAL VERB If you freshen up , you wash your hands and face and make yourself look neat and tidy. □ [V P ] After Martine had freshened up, they went for a long walk.
fresh|er /fre ʃə r / (freshers )
1 Fresher is the comparative form of fresh .
2 N‑COUNT [usu pl] Freshers are students who have just started their first year at university or college. [BRIT , INFORMAL ] in AM, use freshmen
fresh|ly /fre ʃli/ ADV [ADV -ed] If something is freshly made or done, it has been recently made or done. □ …freshly baked bread. □ …freshly cut grass.
fresh|man /fre ʃmən/ (freshmen ) N‑COUNT In America, a freshman is a student who is in his or her first year at university or college.
fresh|water /fre ʃwɔːtə r / ADJ [ADJ n] A freshwater lake contains water that is not salty, usually in contrast to the sea. Freshwater creatures live in water that is not salty. □ …Lake Balaton, the largest freshwater lake in Europe. □ The perch is a freshwater fish.
fret /fre t/ (frets , fretting , fretted )
1 VERB If you fret about something, you worry about it. □ [V + about/over ] I was working all hours and constantly fretting about everyone else's problems. □ [V that] But congressional staffers fret that the project will eventually cost billions more. □ [V ] Don't fret, Mary. This is all some crazy mistake.
2 N‑COUNT The frets on a musical instrument such as a guitar are the raised lines across its neck.
fret|ful /fre tfʊl/ ADJ If someone is fretful , they behave in a way that shows that they worried or unhappy about something. □ Don't assume your baby automatically needs feeding if she's fretful.
fret|work /fre twɜː r k/ N‑UNCOUNT [oft N n] Fretwork is wood or metal that has been decorated by cutting bits of it out to make a pattern.
Freud|ian /frɔ I diən/ ADJ [usu ADJ n] Freudian means relating to the ideas and methods of the psychiatrist Freud, especially to his ideas about people's subconscious sexual feelings. □ …the Freudian theory about daughters falling in love with their father.
Freu d|ian sli p (Freudian slips ) N‑COUNT If someone accidentally says something that reveals their subconscious feelings, especially their sexual feelings, this is referred to as a Freudian slip .
Fri. Fri. is a written abbreviation for Friday .
fri|ar /fra I ə r / (friars ) N‑COUNT A friar is a member of one of several Catholic religious orders.
fric|tion /fr I kʃ ə n/ (frictions )