fraying Definition

fray¹
verb, tr & intr frayed, fraying

1. Said of cloth or rope: to wear away along an edge or at a point of friction, so that individual threads come loose.

Example: The rope frayed over a number of months, and was badly frayed when it broke
2. Said of tempers, nerves, etc: to make or become edgy and strained.

Example: Tempers started fraying just before midnight

Etymology: 18c in this sense; 15c in obsolete sense referring to deer rubbing velvet off their antlers: from French frayer, from Latin fricare to rub.