cold

[ kohld ]

adjective

, cold·er, cold·est.

1. having a relatively low temperature; having little or no warmth:

   cold water; a cold day.

   Synonyms: freezing, frozen, gelid, frigid

   Antonyms: hot

2. feeling an uncomfortable lack of warmth; chilled:

   The skaters were cold.

3. having a temperature lower than the normal temperature of the human body:

   cold hands.

4. lacking in passion, emotion, enthusiasm, ardor, etc.; dispassionate:

   cold reason.

   Synonyms: uninvolved, imperturbable, unconcerned, cool, indifferent

   Antonyms: emotional, warm

5. not affectionate, cordial, or friendly; unresponsive:

   a cold reply; a cold reception.

   Synonyms: unsympathetic, unfriendly, reserved, formal, polite, heartless, unfeeling, apathetic, hostile, inimical

6. lacking sensual desire:

   She remained cold to his advances.

7. failing to excite feeling or interest:

   the cold precision of his prose.

   Synonyms: uninspiring, dull

8. unexcitable; imperturbable:

   cold impassivity.

   Synonyms: deliberate, calm

9. depressing; dispiriting:

   the cold atmosphere of a hospital waiting room.

10. unconscious because of a severe blow, shock, etc.:

    I knocked him cold with an uppercut.

11. lacking the warmth of life; lifeless:

    When the doctor arrived, the body was already cold.

12. faint; weak:

    The dogs lost the cold scent.

13. (in games) distant from the object of search or the correct answer.

    Antonyms: warm

14. Slang. (in sports and games) not scoring or winning; ineffective:

    Cold shooting and poor rebounding were their undoing.

15. Art.
    1. having cool colors, especially muted tones tending toward grayish blue.
    2. being a cool color.
16. slow to absorb heat, as a soil containing a large amount of clay and hence retentive of moisture.
17. Metalworking. noting or pertaining to any process involving plastic deformation of a metal at a temperature below that at which recrystallization can occur because of the strain:

    cold working.

noun

1. the relative absence of heat:

   Everyone suffered from the intense cold.

2. the sensation produced by loss of heat from the body, as by contact with anything having a lower temperature than that of the body:

   He felt the cold of the steel door against his cheek.

3. cold weather:

   He can't take the cold.

4. Also called common cold. a respiratory disorder characterized by sneezing, sore throat, coughing, etc., caused by an allergic reaction or by a viral, bacterial, or mixed infection.

adverb

1. with complete competence, thoroughness, or certainty; absolutely:

   He learned his speech cold.

2. without preparation or prior notice:

   She had to play the lead role cold.

3. in an abrupt, unceremonious manner:

   He quit the job cold.

4. Metalworking. at a temperature below that at which recrystallization can occur (sometimes used in combination):

   to cold-hammer an iron bar; The wire was drawn cold.

cold

/ kəʊld /

adjective

1. having relatively little warmth; of a rather low temperature

   cold hands

   cold weather

2. without sufficient or proper warmth

   this meal is cold

3. lacking in affection, enthusiasm, or warmth of feeling

   a cold manner

4. not affected by emotion; objective

   cold logic

5. dead
6. sexually unresponsive or frigid
7. lacking in freshness

   cold news

   a cold scent

8. chilling to the spirit; depressing
9. (of a colour) having violet, blue, or green predominating; giving no sensation of warmth
10. metallurgy denoting or relating to a process in which work-hardening occurs as a result of the plastic deformation of a metal at too low a temperature for annealing to take place
11. (of a process) not involving heat, in contrast with traditional methods

    cold technology

    cold typesetting

12. informal.
    (of a seeker) far from the object of a search
13. denoting the contacting of potential customers, voters, etc, without previously approaching them in order to establish their interest

    cold mailing

14. cold comfort
    little or no comfort
15. cold steel
    the use of bayonets, knives, etc, in combat
16. from cold
    without advance notice; without giving preparatory information
17. in cold blood
    showing no passion; deliberately; ruthlessly
18. leave someone cold informal.
    to fail to excite someone

    the performance left me cold

19. throw cold water on or pour cold water on informal.
    to be unenthusiastic about or discourage

noun

1. the absence of heat regarded as a positive force

   the cold took away our breath

2. the sensation caused by loss or lack of heat
3. in the cold or out in the cold informal.
   neglected; ignored
4. an acute viral infection of the upper respiratory passages characterized by discharge of watery mucus from the nose, sneezing, etc
5. catch a cold slang.
   to make a loss; lose one's investment

adverb

1. informal.
   without preparation

   he played his part cold

2. informal.
   thoroughly; absolutely

   she turned him down cold

Derived Forms

• ˈcoldish, adjective
• ˈcoldly, adverb
• ˈcoldness, noun

Other Words From

• coldish adjective
• coldly adverb
• coldness noun
• over·cold adjective
• over·coldly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of cold¹

First recorded before 950; Middle English; Old English cald, ceald; cognate with Gothic kalds, Old Norse kaldr, German kalt, Dutch koud; akin to Latin gel- in gelidus gelid

Word History and Origins

Origin of cold¹

Old English ceald; related to Old Norse kaldr, Gothic kalds, Old High German kalt; see cool

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. catch / take cold, to get or suffer from a cold:

   We all caught cold during that dreadful winter.

2. go cold, Slang. (in sports and games) to become unproductive or ineffective; be unable to score.
3. in from the cold, out of a position or condition of exile, concealment, isolation, or alienation:

   Since the new government promised amnesty, fugitive rebels are coming in from the cold.

4. left out in the cold, neglected; ignored; forgotten: Also out in the cold.

   After the baby came, the young husband felt left out in the cold.

5. throw cold water on, to disparage; disapprove of; dampen the enthusiasm of:

   They threw cold water on her hopes to take acting classes.

6. in cold blood. blood ( def 20 ).

More idioms and phrases containing cold

• blow hot and cold
• catch cold
• come in from the cold
• in a cold sweat
• in cold blood
• in cold storage
• in the cold light of day
• knock out (cold)
• leave one cold
• make one's blood run cold
• out cold
• out in the cold
• pour cold water on
• stone cold
• stop cold

Synonym Study

Cold, chill, chilly, cool refer to various degrees of absence of heat. Cold refers to temperature possibly so low as to cause suffering: cold water. Chill suggests a penetrating cold which causes shivering and numbness: There was a chill wind blowing. Chilly is a weaker word, though it also connotes shivering and discomfort: a chilly room. Cool means merely somewhat cold, not warm: cool and comfortable. All have figurative uses.

Example Sentences

He also repeatedly coughed and said he would "pass out" himself as he had a cold, the court heard.

From BBC

She gave him hundreds of thousands of dollars, and then, after her death, her Colcom Foundation, named after the bleak and satirical novel “Cold Comfort Farm,” continued to donate to Tanton’s organizations — more than $150 million.

From Salon

The cold spell looks set to last for about a week for many, before milder Atlantic air returns in time for the start of winter.

From BBC

This change in weather fortunes comes about thanks to a blocking area of high pressure building across Greenland with cold Arctic air emptying out across the UK and bitter northerly winds developing.

From BBC

The weather will start to cool down on Saturday as a cold front pushes southwards, with the air turning progressively colder into next week as an Arctic air mass becomes established.

From BBC

Related Words

• chill
• snow