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Dictionary


cold



Pronunciation: (kōld), [key]
—adj., -er, -est,
—n., adv.

—adj.
1. having a relatively low temperature; having little or no warmth: cold water; a cold day.
2. feeling an uncomfortable lack of warmth; chilled: The skaters were cold.
3. having a temperature lower than the normal temperature of the human body: cold hands.
4. lacking in passion, emotion, enthusiasm, ardor, etc.; dispassionate: cold reason.
5. not affectionate, cordial, or friendly; unresponsive: a cold reply; a cold reception.
6. lacking sensual desire: She remained cold to his advances.
7. failing to excite feeling or interest: the cold precision of his prose.
8. unexcitable; imperturbable: cold impassivity.
9. depressing; dispiriting: the cold atmosphere of a hospital waiting room.
10. unconscious because of a severe blow, shock, etc.: I knocked him cold with an uppercut.
11. lacking the warmth of life; lifeless: When the doctor arrived, the body was already cold.
12. faint; weak: The dogs lost the cold scent.
13. (in games) distant from the object of search or the correct answer.
14. Slang.(in sports and games) not scoring or winning; ineffective: Cold shooting and poor rebounding were their undoing.
15. Art.
a. having cool colors, esp. muted tones tending toward grayish blue.
b. being a cool color.
16. slow to absorb heat, as a soil containing a large amount of clay and hence retentive of moisture.
17. Metalworking.noting or pertaining to any process involving plastic deformation of a metal at a temperature below that at which recrystallization can occur because of the strain: cold working.
18. go cold, Slang.(in sports and games) to become unproductive or ineffective; be unable to score.
19. in cold blood. See blood (def. 18).
20. throw cold water on, to disparage; disapprove of; dampen the enthusiasm of: They threw cold water on her hopes to take acting classes.

—n.
1. the relative absence of heat: Everyone suffered from the intense cold.
2. the sensation produced by loss of heat from the body, as by contact with anything having a lower temperature than that of the body: He felt the cold of the steel door against his cheek.
3. cold weather: He can't take the cold.
4. Also called common cold. a respiratory disorder characterized by sneezing, sore throat, coughing, etc., caused by an allergic reaction or by a viral, bacterial, or mixed infection.
5. catch or take cold, to get or suffer from a cold: We all caught cold during that dreadful winter.
6. in from the cold, out of a position or condition of exile, concealment, isolation, or alienation: Since the new government promised amnesty, fugitive rebels are coming in from the cold.
7. left out in the cold, neglected; ignored; forgotten: After the baby came, the young husband felt left out in the cold. Also,out in the cold.

—adv.
1. with complete competence, thoroughness, or certainty; absolutely: He learned his speech cold.
2. without preparation or prior notice: She had to play the lead role cold.
3. in an abrupt, unceremonious manner: He quit the job cold.
4. Metalworking.at a temperature below that at which recrystallization can occur (sometimes used in combination): to cold-hammer an iron bar; The wire was drawn cold.

Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.

colcotharcold-blooded
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