cold feet
2 antonyms for cold feet — opposites grouped by meaning.
Noun — A sudden loss of nerve about something you had already decided to do.
Antonyms
How to use cold feet
The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.
get cold feet
have cold feet
cold feet about
a case of cold feet
Informal and idiomatic; almost always used with get or have, and it is uncountable.
Etymology
Idiomatic sense possibly from a calque of German kalte Füße bekommen (“to get cold feet”), or of Lombard avegh minga frecc i pee (“to have no money”, literally “to be cold in the feet”) (Italian aver freddo ai piedi), said by a person who wishes to stop gambling, allegedly because the person now has cold feet due to be...
Full origin of cold feet →Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between getting cold feet and changing your mind?
Changing your mind means new reasoning led to a different decision. Cold feet means fear or nerves overtook a decision you had already made and probably still believe in. That is why it usually strikes just before the commitment.
Is cold feet only about weddings?
No. Weddings are the classic example, but the phrase applies to any commitment, such as pulling out of a house purchase, a job offer, an investment or a public speech.
Can you say cold foot in the singular?
No. Cold feet is a fixed idiom and only works in the plural. The singular refers literally to a chilly foot.
