thaw

verb \ ˈthȯ \

Updated on: 23 May 2018

intransitive verb

1 a : to go from a frozen to a liquid state : melt

b : to become free of the effect (such as stiffness, numbness, or hardness) of cold as a result of exposure to warmth

2 : to be warm enough to melt ice and snow —used with it in reference to the weather

3 : to abandon aloofness, reserve, or hostility : unbend

4 : to become mobile, active, or susceptible to change

transitive verb

: to cause to thaw

See thaw defined for English-language learners

See thaw defined for kids

Examples of thaw in a Sentence

Plant the seeds in early spring as soon as the ground thaws.
The sun will soon thaw the snow and ice.
The weather is beginning to thaw.
Our cold fingers and toes eventually thawed.
She held the coffee cup tightly, trying to thaw her frozen fingers.

Recent Examples of thaw from the Web

All across the North, the very ground is changing, and the buildings and roads built upon the thawing permafrost are shifting and cracking.

— melody schreiber, WIRED, "The Race to Save Arctic Cities As Permafrost Melts," 14 May 2018
The Fulani of West Africa believed that the world started with a single drop of milk, and in Norse legend, a cow made from thawing frost sustained the world in its earliest days.

— daniel fernandez, Smithsonian, "The Surprisingly Intolerant History of Milk," 11 May 2018
Other than the grounds crew sweeping puddles from the thawing ice, U.S. Bank Arena sat quietly three days after the Cincinnati Cyclones' first-round playoff exit.

— charlie hatch, Cincinnati.com, "Life of a young hockey pro: Devante Stephens of the Cincinnati Cyclones a 'living suitcase'," 10 May 2018
The British submarine HMS Trenchant joined forces with America's Seawolf-class USS Connecticut and Los Angeles-class USS Hartford in a dress rehearsal for competing in this thawing theater of war.

— david hambling, Popular Mechanics, "How the Navy Punches a Nuclear Sub Through Arctic Ice," 5 Apr. 2018
Maple Sugar Days Freezing nighttime temperatures in combination with thawing daytime temperatures are turning the sugar maple trees at Wehr Nature Center into maple-sap machines.

— bob dohr, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Wehr Nature Center set to host 42nd annual Maple Sugar Days," 19 Mar. 2018
As the Cold War thawed in the 1980s, revolutions across Eastern Europe in 1989 led to the fall of communism.

— SI.com, "World Cup Countdown: 7 Weeks to Go - West Germany Win Italia '90 Against a Backdrop of Reunification," 6 May 2018
Some of the violations were for meat that was improperly thawing.

— ben brasch, ajc, "Cobb barbecue spot fails health check with ‘grime, congealed grease’," 3 May 2018
This pursuit of justice was Schwan's leitmotif as her career morphed from professor of political science to president of the German-Polish Viadrina University that sprang up when the cold war thawed to Berlin’s envoy for Polish-German relations.

— elizabeth pond, The Christian Science Monitor, "How an activist who helped transform postwar Germany views its newest challenges," 18 Apr. 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of thaw

Middle English, from Old English thawian; akin to Old High German douwen to thaw, Greek tēkein to melt, Latin tabēre to waste away

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

in the meaning defined at transitive sense

See Words from the same year

thaw Synonyms

thaw

noun

1 : the action, fact, or process of thawing

2 : a period of weather warm enough to thaw ice

the January thaw

3 : the action or process of becoming less aloof, less hostile, or more genial

a thaw in international relations

See thaw defined for English-language learners

Examples of thaw in a Sentence

flooding from the spring thaw
a thaw in international relations

Recent Examples of thaw from the Web

Trump and Kim are currently the favorites to win the prize, according to one British oddsmaker, and some of Trump’s aides are telling reporters that a lasting thaw between North and South Korea should win Trump the award.

— adam k. raymond, Daily Intelligencer, "The Campaign for Donald Trump’s Nobel Peace Prize Has Begun," 27 Apr. 2018
Trump said Lighthizer would join Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin in Beijing next week to discuss trade, in what could help lead to a thaw in increasingly tense relations with China.

— don lee, latimes.com, "Trump is pushing hard to reach NAFTA agreement, both with trading partners and with Congress," 24 Apr. 2018
Now the insects will begin expanding their colonies for spring, with ticks also benefiting from the early thaw.

— caroline picard, Good Housekeeping, "Bug Populations Are Expected to Explode This Spring," 4 Apr. 2018
The roads are still wet; there's plenty more snow to melt; and the freeze/thaw cycle is continuing.

— anna rose macarthur, Anchorage Daily News, "Bethel highway repair underway as warm winter destroys state roads across Alaska," 30 Mar. 2018
Trump’s aides believe that if the meeting leads to a thaw between the U.S. and North Korea, which at points last year seemed at the brink of war, the president and Kim could win the Nobel Peace Prize.

— Bloomberg.com, "Trump Says He’ll Abandon Kim Talks If They’re Not ‘Fruitful’," 21 Apr. 2018
Head coach Dwane Casey monitored Lowry’s playing time and also worked hard to create a thaw in their relationship.

— bruce jenkins, San Francisco Chronicle, "NBA series capsules," 12 Apr. 2018
This prevents water from doing more damage, often through the freeze-thaw phenomenon of winter that turns cracks into caverns.

— sarah bowman, Indianapolis Star, "This is why bacteria could be the answer to your pothole prayers," 3 Apr. 2018
The proposal stems from flooding at the entrance from an unexpected thaw in the permafrost, though none of the seed stocks were affected.

— adrian higgins, idahostatesman, "Dispelling myths around the Arctic Circle’s famed ‘doomsday’ seed vault on its 10th anniversary | Idaho Statesman," 28 Feb. 2018

First Known Use of thaw

15th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

Other Climate/Meteorology Terms

monsoon, occlusion, ozone, rime, squall, zephyr

THAW Defined for English Language Learners

thaw

verb

: to stop being frozen or to cause (something) to stop being frozen
of weather : to become warm enough that snow and ice melt
: to return to a normal temperature after being very cold

thaw

noun

: a period of weather that is warm enough to melt ice and snow
: a situation in which a relationship becomes more friendly and less angry

THAW Defined for Kids

thaw

verb \ ˈthȯ \

thawed; thawing

1 : to melt or cause to melt

2 : to grow less unfriendly or quiet in manner

thaw

noun

1 : a period of weather warm enough to melt ice and snow

2 : the action, fact, or process of becoming less hostile or unfriendly

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See words that rhyme with thaw Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for thaw Spanish Central: Translation of thaw Nglish: Translation of thaw for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of thaw for Arabic speakers

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Examples of thaw in a Sentence

Recent Examples of thaw from the Web

Origin and Etymology of thaw

thaw Synonyms

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thaw

Examples of thaw in a Sentence

Recent Examples of thaw from the Web

First Known Use of thaw

Other Climate/Meteorology Terms

THAW Defined for English Language Learners

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THAW Defined for Kids

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