Word: cold Part of Speech: adj Etymology: Inherited from Middle English cold, from Anglian Old English cald. The West Saxon form, ċeald (“cold”), survived as early Middle English cheald, cheld, or chald. Both descended from Proto-West Germanic *kald, from Proto-Germanic *kaldaz (“cold”), a participle form of *kalaną (“to be cold, to freeze”), from Proto-Indo-European *gel- (“to be cold, to freeze”). Cognates Cognate with Scots cauld (“cold”), Saterland Frisian koold (“cold”), West Frisian kâld (“cold”), Alemannic German chalt, choalt, cholt, chélte (“cold”), Bavarian ckolt, kholt, koid, kòlt (“cold”), Central Franconian kalt (“cold”), Cimbrian kalt, khalt (“cold”), Dutch koud (“cold”), German kalt (“cold”), Low German kold, koolt (“cold”), Luxembourgish kal (“cold”), Mòcheno khòlt, kòlt (“cold”), Vilamovian kāłt (“cold”), Yiddish קאַלט (kalt, “cold”), Danish kold (“cold”), Faroese and Icelandic kaldur (“cold”), Norwegian Bokmål kald (“cold”), Norwegian Nynorsk kald, kald’u (“cold”), Swedish kall (“cold”), Gothic 𐌺𐌰𐌻𐌳𐍃 (kalds, “cold”); also Latin gelū, gelum, gelus (“frost; chill, cold”), Belarusian хо́лад (xólad, “cold”), Bulgarian хлад (hlad, “chill, coolness”), Czech chlad (“cold”), Macedonian лад (lad, “shade; coolness”), Polish chłód (“cold”), Russian and Ukrainian хо́лод (xólod, “cold”), Serbo-Croatian хла̑д, hlȃd (“shade”), Sanskrit जड (jaḍa, “cold; stiff”), जल (jala, “water”). Related to cool. Pronunciation: /kəʊld/, [kʰɔʊɫd], [kʰɒʊɫd], /kɔwld/, [kʰɔw(ɫ)d] 1. Having a low temperature. Example: A cold wind whistled through the trees. Example: As cold waters to a thirstie soule: so is good newes from a farre countrey. 2. Causing the air to be cold. Example: The forecast is that it will be very cold today. Example: As fruits of hotter countries, transearthed in colder climates, have vigour enough in themselves to be fructuous according to their nature: but, that they are hindered by the chilling nips of the air, and the soil, wherein they are planted. 3. Feeling the sensation of coldness, especially to the point of discomfort. Example: She was so cold she was shivering. 4. Unfriendly; emotionally distant or unfeeling. Example: She shot me a cold glance before turning her back. Example: At the end of a week, she could bear the suspense no longer, and so went humbly to her old home and sought forgiveness. She was not repulsed, but her reception was cold; and this hurt her almost as badly. 5. Chilled, filled with an uncomfortable sense of fear, dread, or alarm. Example: Yet oft when sundown skirts the moor ⁠An inner trouble I behold, ⁠A spectral doubt which makes me cold, That I shall be thy mate no more, […] 6. Dispassionate; not prejudiced or partisan; impartial. Example: Let's look at this tomorrow with a cold head. Example: He's a nice guy, but the cold facts say we should fire him. 7. Completely unprepared; without introduction. Example: He was assigned cold calls for the first three months. Example: The one thing considered the brass ring in selling insurance was making a sale on a cold canvass. Cold canvassing was the most dreaded exercise for most insurance salesmen. 8. Unconscious or deeply asleep; deprived of the metaphorical heat associated with life or consciousness. Example: I knocked him out cold. Example: After one more beer he passed out cold. 9. Perfectly, exactly, completely; by heart; down pat. Labels: usually Example: Practice your music scales until you know them cold. Example: Try both these maneuvers until you have them cold and can do them in the dark without thinking. 10. Cornered; done for. Labels: usually Example: With that receipt, we have them cold for fraud. Example: Criminal interrogation. Initially they will dream up explanations faster than you could ever do so, but when they become fatigued, often they will acknowledge that you have them cold. 11. Cool, impressive. Labels: slang Example: There were more than a few unforgettable moments from Sunday's Game 7 showdown between the Golden State Warriors and the Sacramento Kings. Steph Curry came up with an epic performance on a record-setting evening, and he also produced one of the coldest photos of the NBA Playoffs thus far. Example: Lowkey she so cold for that 12. Not pungent or acrid. Labels: obsolete Example: cold plants 13. Unexciting; dull; uninteresting. Labels: obsolete Example: What a deal of cold business doth a man misspend the better part of life in! Example: The jest grows cold[…]when it comes on in a second scene. 14. Affecting the sense of smell (as of hunting dogs) only feebly; having lost its odour. Example: a cold scent 15. Not sensitive; not acute. Labels: obsolete Example: Smell this business with a sense as cold / As is a dead man's nose. 16. Distant; said, in the game of hunting for some object, of a seeker remote from the thing concealed. Compare warm and hot. Example: You're cold … getting warmer … hot! You've found it! 17. Having a bluish effect; not warm in colour. 18. Rarely used or accessed, and thus able to be relegated to slower storage. 19. Without compassion; heartless; ruthless. Labels: informal Example: I can't believe she said that...that was cold! Example: River Song: (upon seeing the still-living Doctor, moments after he made her and two other friends watch what they thought was his death) This is cold. Even by your standards, this is cold. 20. Not radioactive. Labels: informal Example: "That's right," Jackson said. "The Old Man will be pleased to welcome you." There was eagerness in his reedy voice. "What do you say? We'll take care of you. Feed you, bring you cold plants and animals. For a week maybe?" 21. Not loaded with a round of live ammunition. 22. Without electrical power being supplied. Example: Therefore, to avoid unnecessary delay in the trouble-shooting procedure, it is good practice to make a resistance check on a "cold" circuit (before applying power), to determine whether resistance values are normal.