INDEX:
1. cold weather
2. extremely cold weather
3. pleasantly cold weather
4. person
5. place/room
6. liquid/object/surface
7. food/drink
8. to make food and drink cold
9. to get cold or colder
RELATED WORDS
opposite
↑ HOT
see also
↑ WEATHER
↑ WET
↑ DRY
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1. cold weather
▷ cold /kəʊld/ [adjective]
▪ This is the coldest winter we’ve had in years.
▪ a cold January evening
it’s cold
the weather is cold
▪ Put your gloves on - it’s cold outside today.
it gets cold
▪ It gets really cold here at night.
cold weather
▪ The layer of fat below a goose’s skin protects it from cold weather.
▷ the cold /ðə ˈkəʊld/ [uncountable noun]
cold weather - use this to emphasize how unpleasant and uncomfortable it is outside :
▪ Come in. Don’t stand out there in the cold.
▷ chilly /ˈtʃɪli/ [adjective]
cold, but not extremely cold :
▪ a chilly morning in April
it’s chilly
the weather is chilly
▪ It’s a little chilly out here - I think we’ll go inside.
it gets/turns chilly
▪ Temperatures were in the 80s on Tuesday, but it turned chilly Wednesday afternoon.
▷ nippy /ˈnɪpi/ [adjective] informal
a little cold :
▪ The weather’s getting warmer, but the mornings are still nippy.
it’s nippy
the weather is nippy
▪ I’m going indoors. It’s a little nippy out here.
▷ frosty /ˈfrɒstiǁˈfrɔːsti/ [adjective]
very cold, when everything is covered in a thin white layer of ice, and the sky is often bright and clear :
▪ They were both shivering slightly from the frosty air.
▪ It was a frosty autumn morning with spiders’ webs glistening in the frozen grass.
▷ wintry /ˈwɪntri/ [adjective]
cold with snow or rain, and typical of the weather you often have in winter :
▪ We can expect a few wintry showers on the northern hills.
▪ Outside it was a cold wintry day, but Anne felt safe and warm inside by the fire.
▷ cold spell /ˈkəʊld ˌspel/ [countable noun]
a period of several days or weeks when the weather is much colder than usual :
▪ Last month’s cold spell was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of old people.
▪ The price of firewood usually shoots up during cold spells.
▷ cold snap /ˈkəʊld ˌsnæp/ [countable noun]
a sudden short period of very cold weather :
▪ It was a wintry day in April in the middle of an unexpected cold snap.
2. extremely cold weather
▷ freezing/freezing cold /ˈfriːzɪŋ, ˌfriːzɪŋ ˈkəʊld◂/ [adjective]
extremely cold, so that water turns to ice :
▪ The freezing weather continued all through February.
it’s freezing/freezing cold
▪ How can you stand to be out here without a coat? It’s freezing!
▷ bitterly cold/bitter /ˌbɪtəʳli ˈkəʊld◂, ˈbɪtəʳ/ [adjective]
extremely cold so that it almost hurts you to be outdoors :
▪ We arrived in Chicago during the bitterly cold winter of 1935.
▪ a bitter east wind
it’s bitterly cold
▪ Don’t go out tonight. It’s bitterly cold.
▷ arctic /ˈɑːʳktɪk/ [adjective only before noun]
arctic conditions/winds/chill
extremely cold, usually with ice and snow :
▪ I wouldn’t take the car out in these arctic conditions.
▪ He could feel the arctic chill creeping into the cabin.
▷ subzero temperatures /ˌsʌbzɪ ə rəʊ ˈtemp ə rətʃəʳzǁ -ziːrəʊ-/ [plural noun]
temperatures that are very cold and below the point at which water freezes :
▪ Subzero temperatures can be expected for the next few days.
▪ Thousands of refugees are spending tonight on a mountainside in subzero temperatures.
3. pleasantly cold weather
▷ cool /kuːl/ [adjective]
cold in a pleasant way, especially after the weather has been hot :
▪ a cool sea breeze
▪ Although the days are very hot, it’s much cooler at night.
▷ fresh /freʃ/ [adjective] especially British
pleasantly cold and windy :
▪ We walked towards the sea with a fresh breeze blowing in our faces.
▪ The hot weather will continue today, but tomorrow will be fresher with cool, westerly winds.
▷ crisp /krɪsp/ [adjective]
pleasantly cold, dry, and clear :
▪ I love to be out of doors on these bright, crisp autumn mornings.
▪ The weather was crisp and clear and you could see the mountains fifty miles away.
▷ bracing /ˈbreɪsɪŋ/ [adjective]
cold, fresh and clear in a way that makes you feel healthy and cheerful :
▪ Hank loved the feel of the bracing sea air against his face.
▪ Tourists are attracted by the beautiful scenery and bracing mountain climate.
4. person
▷ cold /kəʊld/ [adjective not before noun]
feeling cold :
▪ Dad, I’m cold. Can I put the heater on?
▪ Your hands are really cold!
feel cold
▪ He woke up in the middle of the night feeling cold.
look cold
▪ Come and sit by the fire. You look cold.
▷ freezing also frozen British /ˈfriːzɪŋ, ˈfrəʊz ə n/ [adjective not before noun] spoken
feeling very cold and uncomfortable :
▪ How much longer do we have to wait out her? I’m freezing.
▪ You look absolutely frozen.
▷ shiver /ˈʃɪvəʳ/ [intransitive verb]
to shake a little because you are cold :
▪ I was shivering in my thin sleeping bag.
shiver with cold
▪ They were forced to wait outside for hours, shivering with cold.
shiver [countable noun]
▪ A shiver of cold ran through him when he stepped outside.
▷ be blue with cold /biː ˌbluː wɪð ˈkəʊld/ [verb phrase]
to be so cold that your skin turns slightly blue :
▪ He was huddled into his coat, his face blue with cold.
▪ Look at her. The poor girl’s quite blue with cold.
▷ have goosepimples British /have goosebumps American /hæv ˈguːsˌpɪmp ə lz, hæv ˈguːsbʌmps/ [plural noun]
to have small raised areas on your skin because you are cold :
▪ She was shivering, her arms and legs covered in goosepimples.
▪ Why don’t you put something else on? You’ve got goosebumps.
▷ somebody’s teeth are chattering / somebodyˈs ˈtiːθ ɑːʳ ˌtʃætərɪŋ/
if your teeth are chattering you are so cold that your teeth keep knocking together and you cannot stop them :
▪ Her teeth were chattering with cold.
5. place/room
▷ cold /kəʊld/ [adjective]
▪ I love being in a warm bed in a cold room.
▪ He waited an hour for the train on a cold platform.
it’s cold
▪ Why is it always so cold in here?
▷ cool /kuːl/ [adjective]
cold in a pleasant way, especially when the weather is hot :
▪ Medicine should always be stored in a cool place.
it’s cool
▪ It’s much cooler over here in the shade.
▷ chilly /ˈtʃɪli/ [adjective]
a little too cold for you to feel comfortable :
▪ They have to get washed and dressed in a chilly bathroom.
it’s chilly
▪ It’s chilly in the house, even when it’s sunny outside.
▷ draughty British /drafty American /ˈdrɑːftiǁˈdræf-/ [adjective]
a room that is draughty has cold air blowing into it from outside :
▪ The two women live in a drafty old farmhouse.
it’s draughty/drafty
▪ It’s so draughty in here. Is there a window open?
▷ freezing /ˈfriːzɪŋ/ [adjective]
extremely cold, so that you feel very uncomfortable :
▪ The little children sat in rows in the freezing classroom.
it’s freezing
▪ It’s absolutely freezing in the basement.
6. liquid/object/surface
▷ cold /kəʊld/ [adjective]
having a low temperature :
▪ I wanted to swim, but the water was too cold.
▪ a cold stone floor
▷ freezing /ˈfriːzɪŋ/ [adjective]
extremely cold :
▪ His friends pulled him from the freezing water.
freezing cold
▪ The river is freezing cold this time of year.
▷ cool /kuːl/ [adjective]
pleasantly cold but not very cold :
▪ Ruth put her cool hand on my burning forehead.
▪ I slid into bed between cool white sheets.
7. food/drink
▷ cold /kəʊld/ [adjective]
▪ I want something cold like an ice cream bar.
▪ Most white wine tastes best when served very cold.
▷ cold /kəʊld/ [adjective]
cooked food that is cold is cooked but no longer hot :
▪ They provided a selection of cold meats.
▪ You can serve the quiche hot or cold.
get cold/go cold
▪ Come eat your dinner before it gets cold.
stone cold
completely cold
▪ By the time I got off the phone, my coffee was stone cold.
▷ cool /kuːl/ [adjective]
pleasantly cold to eat or drink but not very cold :
▪ Can I interest you in a nice, cool drink?
▪ Summer is the time for cool, refreshing fruit salads.
▷ chilled /tʃɪld/ [adjective]
food and drinks that are chilled have been made very cold, especially by putting them on ice :
▪ a bottle of chilled champagne
▷ ice-cold /ˌaɪs ˈkəʊld◂/ [adjective]
ice-cold drinks have been made extremely cold so that they are pleasant to drink, especially when you are very hot :
▪ The kids were rewarded with ice-cold lemonade.
▪ I could do with an ice-cold beer.
▷ frozen /ˈfrəʊz ə n/ [adjective]
frozen food is stored at a very low temperature so that it freezes and can be kept for a long time :
▪ frozen vegetables
▪ All I had in the freezer was a couple of frozen pizzas.
8. to make food and drink cold
▷ cool /kuːl/ [transitive verb]
to make food cold when it has been hot or warm :
▪ Blow on the soup first to cool it.
▪ Cool the jam by stirring it before putting it into jars.
▷ chill /tʃɪl/ [transitive verb]
to make food or drink very cold, without freezing it :
▪ Chill the salad for an hour or two before serving.
▪ Put some ice in the sink, and we’ll chill the drinks in there.
▷ freeze /friːz/ [transitive verb]
to make something extremely cold so that it freezes, in order to preserve it for a long time :
▪ You can make a big batch and freeze some of it for later.
▪ Don’t freeze the rolls for longer than three weeks.
▷ refrigerate /rɪˈfrɪdʒəreɪt/ [transitive verb]
to put food or drink in a refrigerator in order to keep it cold and fresh :
▪ Cover the bowl and refrigerate the dough overnight.
▪ Poultry, fish, and seafood should be kept refrigerated.
9. to get cold or colder
▷ get cold/colder /get ˈkəʊld, ˈkəʊldəʳ/ [verb phrase]
▪ It’s getting colder - I guess winter’s on its way.
▪ Hey, John, your soup’s getting cold.
▷ turn cold/colder /ˌtɜːʳn ˈkəʊld, ˈkəʊldəʳ/ [verb phrase]
if the weather or the wind turns cold or colder, it becomes much colder, usually suddenly :
▪ I need to finish fixing the roof before the weather turns cold.
▪ The wind had turned cold and Billy took off his coat and gave it to the girl.
▷ drop/fall /drɒpǁdrɑːp, fɔːl/ [intransitive verb]
if the temperature drops or falls it becomes colder, often much colder in a short period of time :
▪ Fortunately the temperature never dropped low enough to freeze the pipes.
drop 10/20/30 etc degrees
▪ The temperature dropped 10 degrees during the night.
▷ cool down /ˌkuːl ˈdaʊn/ [intransitive phrasal verb]
if something cools down, it becomes colder after being hot :
▪ It’s been hot all summer, but it’s finally starting to cool down a little.
▪ If the engine overheats, switch it off and do not start it again until it has cooled down.
▷ cool /kuːl/ [intransitive verb]
if hot food or some other hot substance cools, it becomes colder :
▪ She took the cake out of the oven and left it on the kitchen table to cool.
▪ Most liquids contract steadily as they cool.