cold

The word “cold” means having a low temperature; not warm. In plain terms, low temperature (weather, food, drink), or a personality that feels distant and unfeeling, or the sniffly illness everyone gets in winter.

“Cold” is pronounced kohld (/koʊld/ in IPA).

Here is “cold” used in a sentence: “The water in the lake was freezing cold.”

Words with a similar meaning to “cold” include algid, Arctic, Baltic, boreal, brass monkeys and brumal.

The opposite of “cold” — its antonyms — are hot and warm.

Depending on how it is used, “cold” can be an adjective and a noun.

The word “cold” comes from Old English. From Old English cald/ceald, going back through Proto-Germanic to a very old Indo-European root meaning "cold" — the same root that gave German kalt and Swedish kall.

“Cold” is a very common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A1 level.

Both describe low temperatures, but cool is milder and often pleasant, like a cool breeze on a warm day. Cold is stronger and can feel uncomfortable or even harsh. Cool sits between warm and cold on the scale, so something cool is only slightly chilled.

The main opposite is hot, describing a high temperature. Warm is the gentler opposite, sitting between cold and hot. Which one fits depends on degree: a cold drink becomes warm at room temperature and hot when heated. In feelings, cold contrasts with warm or friendly.

Freezing is far more intense than cold. Cold simply means a low temperature that feels chilly, while freezing describes extreme cold, at or below the point where water turns to ice. People also say freezing loosely for any very cold conditions, even above zero degrees.

Yes. Beyond temperature, cold often describes someone distant, unfeeling, or unfriendly, as in a cold stare or a cold reception. It can also mean unemotional or detached. This figurative use draws on the physical sense, linking low warmth to a lack of warmth in behaviour.