1
: very cold
"Put on your jacket. It's freezing outside!"
Addy rushed home through the darkening streets as if she were pushed along by the wind. She was freezing!—
Connie Porter
Connie Porter2
: being at or below the temperature at which water freezes
a forecast for freezing temperatures overnight
freezing
adverb
The weather was freezing cold. [=very cold]
freezingly
adverb
freezingly cold temperatures
Mrs. Reed's hands still lay on her work inactive: her eye of ice continued to dwell freezingly on mine.
—Charlotte Brontë
Charlotte Brontë
: the temperature at which water freezes
temperatures dipping below freezing
Synonyms
Examples of freezing in a Sentence
Adjective
why aren't you wearing a coat, as it's freezing outside?
Recent Examples on the WebRob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 June 2024
The unusual freezing effect meant the drone had plenty of time to capture a high-quality photo with the bug in the frame.
—Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 6 June 2024
Sam Kim / Bloomberg, TIME, 28 May 2024
All the lights are off, your computer is shut down, but your heat is still on at a minimal level to keep your pipes from freezing and the refrigerator is still running.
—Briley Lewis, Popular Science, 9 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for freezing 
Adjective
Advertisement Performance during freezing temperatures has been an issue for electric vehicles in locations such as Chicago and the Twin Cities, as well as in Northern Europe and Scandinavia.
—Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 June 2024
The unusual freezing effect meant the drone had plenty of time to capture a high-quality photo with the bug in the frame.
—Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 6 June 2024
Noun
City authorities are already offering financial support for egg freezing and infertility treatments to help stem the decline in births.
—Sam Kim / Bloomberg, TIME, 28 May 2024
All the lights are off, your computer is shut down, but your heat is still on at a minimal level to keep your pipes from freezing and the refrigerator is still running.
—Briley Lewis, Popular Science, 9 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for freezing
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'freezing.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near freezing
Cite this Entry
“Freezing.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/freezing. Accessed 11 Jun. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share