■ verb ( past froze ; past participle frozen )
1》 (with reference to a liquid) turn or be turned into ice or another solid as a result of extreme cold.
↘become or cause to become blocked or rigid with ice.
2》 be or cause to be very cold.
↘store at a very low temperature as a means of preservation.
3》 become suddenly motionless or paralysed with fear or shock.
↘(of a computer screen) suddenly become locked.
4》 keep or stop at a fixed level or in a fixed state.
↘prevent (assets) from being used for a period of time.
↘stop (a moving image) at a particular frame when filming or viewing.
5》 ( ~ someone out ) informal behave in a hostile or obstructive way so as to exclude someone.
■ noun
1》 an act of freezing something at a fixed level or in a fixed state: a pay ~.
2》 a period of very cold weather: the big ~.
Derivatives
freezable adjective
Origin
OE frēosan , of Gmc origin.