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From Middle English cold, from Old English cald, ċeald ‎(cold), from Proto-Germanic *kaldaz, a participle form of *kalaną ‎(to be cold), from Proto-Indo-European *gel- ‎(cold). Cognate with Scots cald, cauld ‎(cold), Saterland Frisian koold ‎(cold), West Frisian kâld ‎(cold), Dutch koud ‎(cold), Low German kold, koolt, koold ‎(cold), German kalt ‎(cold), Danish kold ‎(cold), Norwegian Bokmål kald ‎(cold), Swedish kall ‎(cold).



cold ‎(comparative colder, superlative coldest)

  1. (of a thing) Having a low temperature.
    A cold wind whistled through the trees.
    The forecast is that it will be very cold today.
    She was so cold she was shivering.
  4. Unfriendly, emotionally distant or unfeeling.
    She shot me a cold glance before turning her back.
  5. Dispassionate, not prejudiced or partisan, impartial.
    Let's look at this tomorrow with a cold head.
  6. Completely unprepared; without introduction.
    He was assigned cold calls for the first three months.
    I knocked him out cold.
    After one more beer he passed out cold.
    Practice your music scales until you know them cold.
    Rehearse your lines until you have them down cold.
    With that receipt, we have them cold for fraud.
  10. (obsolete) Not pungent or acrid.
  11. (obsolete) Unexciting; dull; uninteresting.
    • Ben Jonson (1572-1637)
    • Joseph Addison (1672-1719)
    a cold scent
  13. (obsolete) Not sensitive; not acute.
    • William Shakespeare (1564-1616)
    You're cold … getting warmer … hot! You've found it!



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cold ‎(plural colds)

  1. A condition of low temperature.
    Come in, out of the cold.


Derived terms[edit]

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cold ‎(comparative more cold, superlative most cold)

  1. While at low temperature.
    The steel was processed cold.
  2. Without preparation.
    The speaker went in cold and floundered for a topic.
  3. With finality.
    I knocked him out cold.


Most common English words before 1923: didn't · natural · laid · #517: cold · led · low · American


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