chill

\ ˈchil

How to pronounce chill (audio)

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Definition of chill

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : a sensation of cold accompanied by shivering (as due to illness) He had caught a chill that night, and was now down with a fever.— Wilkie Collins — usually pluralIf you have a cough, fever and chills and are not breathing as easily as usual, you might have a cold or the flu.— Linda SearingOver the next few days, my body followed up with a series of messages: you have a sore throat; you have a fever; you have the chills.— John Herrman

b : an intense shivery sensation : shiver, shudder especially : one caused by a strong emotion (such as fear) Do you like a good scare? The sort of story, or moment, that sends a chill down your spine and makes the hair on your arms stand up like porcupine quills? — Katherine Scott Crawford —often plural a song so beautiful it gives me chills… this is where [Stephen] King shines, creating those aforementioned creepy scenes that gave me the chills. — Katherine Whitt

c : a disagreeable sensation of coldness When you venture outside on a cold day, chances are you feel the biggest chill in your fingers.— Tamekia Reece

2 : a moderate but disagreeable degree of cold a chill in the air

3 : a check to enthusiasm or warmth of feeling And a chill fell over the service as mourners … carried a casket draped in white to the altar.— Katherine Creag and Jennifer Millman

chill

Definition of chill (Entry 2 of 3)

1a : moderately cold

2 : affected by cold chill travelers

3 : distant, formal a chill reception

4 : depressing, dispiriting chill penury— Thomas Gray

5 informal : having a laid-back style or easy demeanor She looked just like Joey Potter … Really young and super chill. No one was paying any attention. It was a laid-back situation.— Emma Pearse We're very casual. I love how at City Hall people come in everything from wedding gowns to jeans. It's so mellow and chill, just how we like it.— Erin Burnett

chill

chilled; chilling; chills

Definition of chill (Entry 3 of 3)

intransitive verb

1a : to become cold

b : to shiver or quake with or as if with cold

2 : to become taken with a chill

b : hang sense 12

transitive verb

1a : to make cold or chilly chilled by a cold wind

b : to make cool especially without freezing chill the wine

2 : to affect as if with cold : dispirit

Other Words from chill Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about chill

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Examples of chill in a Sentence

Noun There was a chill in the autumn air. He closed the windows to keep out the chill. Her symptoms include chills and a fever. He caught a chill that turned into a bad cold. The novel's final scene gave him the chills. Her words sent chills down my spine. Adjective The chill weather kept us indoors. were met with a chill gaze when they arrived home late from the party Verb Chill the dessert for one hour before serving it. Let the dessert chill for one hour before serving it. Here's a ghost story that will chill you. Her screams chilled me to the bone . a horrible sight that chilled my bones He thinks his parents are way too uptight and says they should just chill. I decided to stay home and chill.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun The blood cells burst, causing fever, headache, chills, muscle aches, and often anemia. — Jop De Vrieze, Science | AAAS, "First malaria vaccine rolled out in Africa—despite limited efficacy and nagging safety concerns," 26 Nov. 2019 A day after temperatures reached the mid-50s, breaking a stretch of wintry chill, cold weather returned Saturday, with a high expected only near 36 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. — BostonGlobe.com, "A north wind up to 14 miles per hour could add to the chill, forecasters said, and four ferries to Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, three from the Steamship Authority and one from Hy-Line Cruises, were cancelled due to weather conditions Saturday morning, according to the companies.," 16 Nov. 2019 Friday brought a welcome reprieve from the mid-January temperatures that had been in place for much of the week, but unfortunately another Canadian cold front swept through Connecticut Friday night, bringing a return of the mid-winter chill. — courant.com, "Sunny, breezy and quite chilly," 15 Nov. 2019 PNC Broadway presents Disney's Lion King Oct. 30 to Nov. 17, 2019 Louisville Courier Journal The first note will give you chills. — Kathryn Gregory, The Courier-Journal, "'The Lion King' roars into Louisville with stunning costumes and vibrant choreography," 2 Nov. 2019 However, Halloween revelers, especially those in skimpy costumes, may notice a bit of a chill in the air. — Michael Cabanatuan, SFChronicle.com, "Halloween forecast: Smoke concerns overblown, nippy weather coming for trick-or-treaters," 31 Oct. 2019 Influenza symptoms can include a fever, chills, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, fatigue and headaches. — Libby Richards, The Conversation, "Why the flu shot cannot give you the flu (and why you should get one now)," 27 Sep. 2019 The onset of berserkergang purportedly began with bodily chills, shivering, and teeth chattering, followed by swelling and reddening of the face. — Jennifer Ouellette, Wired, "How Vikings Went Into a Trancelike Rage Before Battle," 21 Sep. 2019 The air was getting chill, not quite freezing over, and somewhere to the west of us a wave of rage was washing up on the machinery of the season. — Daniel Poppick, Harper's magazine, "Rumors," 16 Sep. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective Playing Death Stranding online is like playing the world’s chillest MMO, where there’s no griefing, no annoying public chat, and no need to actively organize or communicate with other players at all. — Kyle Orland, Ars Technica, "Death Stranding is Kojima unleashed, and it’s as weird as you’d expect," 1 Nov. 2019 The visiting team clubhouse at Petco Park in San Diego is the chillest spot in baseball. — Peter Abraham, BostonGlobe.com, "Red Sox among teams with something to play for in September," 31 Aug. 2019 After Kate's water broke and she was admitted to the hospital, Miguel was, arguably, the most chill person in the waiting room — well, besides Madison and that incredibly aggravating Rold Gold pretzel lady. — Kayla Keegan, Good Housekeeping, "'This Is Us' Fans Are Furious With Miguel After Watching the Latest Episode," 13 Mar. 2019 An extremely cool, chill way to go about winning a medal. — Madeleine Aggeler, The Cut, "Cool Teen Red Gerard Overslept Before Winning Olympic Gold," 12 Feb. 2018 Ormsby's and The Painted Duck are also fantastically chill game spots, especially during the weeknights, complete with board games, shuffleboard, darts and more. — Avery Newmark, ajc, "7 low-key date ideas for Atlanta's chill couples," 8 June 2018 Looking for a chiller way to celebrate the holiday? — Hannah Steinkopf-frank, RedEye Chicago, "How to celebrate a queer St. Patrick’s Day in Chicago," 15 Mar. 2018 The next pour: Anchorage Brewing Co. (148 W. 91st Ave.), which has a totally chill outdoor hangout spot that's a local favorite, or Cynosure (144 E. Potter Drive, Unit E), which focuses on Belgian-style ales. — Jenna Schnuer, Anchorage Daily News, "24 hours in Anchorage (give or take an hour or two)," 3 May 2018 Turns out [the Brady-Bündchen household] was a pretty chill scene. — Sara Morosi, WSJ, "WSJ. Magazine Contributors: April 2018," 5 Apr. 2018 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb If the brain and the rest of the body are chilled, however, biochemical reactions are slowed, and the body can go for longer periods of time without oxygen. — Claire Bugos, Smithsonian, "Doctors Put a Patient in Suspended Animation for the First Time," 23 Nov. 2019 These chilling comments from a high official of that country once again put the spotlight on the nuclear risks involved in south Asia, especially with regards to Kashmir. — Niharika Sharma, Quartz India, "As Jammu & Kashmir loses its political status, here’s what the past 80 days have meant for it," 31 Oct. 2019 Dunagan added another two eggs to her batter, smoothed it out in a Vitamix blender and chilled it again so the flour would absorb the moisture. — Dahlia Ghabour, The Courier-Journal, "Who run the world? This Louisville culinary program proves it's female chefs," 22 Oct. 2019 Drop balls of chilled pimiento cheese mixture into hot oil using a 1-inch scoop. — Advertorial, Orange County Register, "Recipe Corner: Professor Phineas Plump’s Cure-All Fritters Royal Street Veranda, Disneyland Park," 19 Sep. 2019 Assemble the sandwiches; place in an air-tight container and refrigerate for an hour or until well-chilled and not oozing. — Susan Clotfelter, The Know, "Bored with raisins? Try these 5 “fancy” trail mix recipes," 27 Aug. 2019 Drop dough onto prepared baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart, and refrigerate until chilled, at least 20 minutes. — The Good Housekeeping Test Kitchen, Good Housekeeping, "Dark Chocolate Candy Cookies," 1 Aug. 2019 Transfer jars to a wire rack and let cool completely, then refrigerate until chilled, at least 2 1/2 hours and up to 2 days. — Woman's Day Kitchen, Woman's Day, "Eggnog Pudding," 14 Nov. 2019 In a situation of great tension, the imagination could amplify the slightest of noises to a blood-chilling moan. — Oscar Urbiola, National Geographic, "How did 18th-century vampire hunters identify the undead? Blood and fingernails," 29 Oct. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'chill.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Learn More about chill

Dictionary Entries near chill

Statistics for chill

Last Updated

3 Dec 2019

Cite this Entry

“Chill.” The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Inc., https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chill. Accessed 11 December 2019.

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More Definitions for chill

chill

noun

English Language Learners Definition of chill

(Entry 1 of 3)

: a cold feeling : a degree of cold that can be felt and that is usually unpleasant

: a feeling of being cold

: an illness that makes you feel cold

chill

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of chill (Entry 2 of 3)

somewhat formal : unpleasantly cold

chill

verb

English Language Learners Definition of chill (Entry 3 of 3)

: to make (someone or something) cold or cool

: to become cold or cool

: to cause (someone) to feel afraid

See the full definition for chill in the English Language Learners Dictionary

chill

\ ˈchil

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Kids Definition of chill

(Entry 1 of 3)

1 : coldness that is unpleasant but not extreme There was a chill in the autumn air.

2 : a feeling of coldness accompanied by shivering She has a fever and chills.

3 : a feeling of coldness caused by fear The grisly sight gave me the chills.

chill

Kids Definition of chill (Entry 2 of 3)

1 : unpleasantly cold : raw Everything was damp and chill and miserable in the wagon …— Laura Ingalls Wilder, Little House on the Prairie

2 : not friendly a chill greeting

chill

chilled; chilling

Kids Definition of chill (Entry 3 of 3)

1 : to make or become cold or chilly The wind chilled us to the bone.

2 : to make cool especially without freezing Chill the pudding for dessert.

3 : to cause to feel cold from fear This ghost story will chill you.

chill

\ ˈchil

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Medical Definition of chill

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a sensation of cold accompanied by shivering

2 : a disagreeable sensation of coldness

chill

intransitive verb

Medical Definition of chill (Entry 2 of 2)

1a : to become cold

b : to shiver or quake with or as if with cold

2 : to become affected with a chill

transitive verb

: to make cold or chilly

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chill

transitive verb

Legal Definition of chill

: to discourage especially through fear of penalty : have a chilling effect on statutes which may chill the exercise of…free expression— M. H. Redish

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WORD OF THE DAY

sodden

heavy with or as if with moisture

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