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cold feet

noun

Definition of cold feetnext
as in uncertainty

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of cold feet A couple days ago a THR report claimed that Universal was getting cold feet over releasing Alex Gibney’s Musk documentary in international territories. — Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 18 Sep. 2026 That has sent maritime insurance rates through the roof and given some financiers and shipping companies cold feet about tempting fate and navigating through the troubled waters. — David Goldman, CNN Money, 15 June 2026 As for whether Smirnoff-Skyy's flair might give some buyers cold feet, listing agent Adelaida Mejia of Vanguard Properties isn't losing any sleep over it. — Itay Hod, CBS News, 9 June 2026 Advertisers began to get cold feet about the vigilante-like tactics used to investigate alleged predators. — Toni Fitzgerald, Forbes.com, 28 May 2026 Or, sometimes the non-comics get cold feet on a certain joke. — Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 12 May 2026 The $10 billion that Cursor keeps even if the deal doesn’t happen looks, to my traditional M&A reporter brain, like the largest breakup fee on record (a smart move, given Musk’s penchant for getting cold feet). — Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 23 Apr. 2026 But Borgli isn’t just delivering a biting satire on the ultimate case of cold feet. — David Sims, The Atlantic, 3 Apr. 2026 Did OpenAI’s discontinuation of Sora force Disney out of the deal, or did Disney get cold feet first? — Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 25 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cold feet
  1. uncertainty
  2. doubt
  3. suspense
  4. dread
  5. angst
  6. torment
  7. foreboding
  8. upset
Noun
  • That adds to the uncertainty about the future balance of the five-network pool.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Zak Bennett | Bloomberg | Getty Images Stock markets remain volatile as investors weigh uncertainty in the Middle East, rising interest rates and concerns about the artificial intelligence (AI) trade.
    — TipRanks Staff, CNBC, 27 Sep. 2026
Definition of uncertainty
Noun
  • Adell hit a no-doubt 440-foot shot into the left-center fountains off Royals starter Daniel Lynch IV, effectively knocking Lynch from the game.
    — Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 27 Sep. 2026
  • His only run came off a no-doubt solo homer from Christian Walker that gave the Astros a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of doubt
Noun
  • In fiction, spoiler alerts exist to protect the reader experience, premised on the idea that knowing a story’s outcome will reduce momentum and suspense.
    — Beverly Gage, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2026
  • We’re not immersed in any of the procedural’s dangers, its uncertainties, its suspense, its psychic toll.
    — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of suspense
Noun
  • The line between dread and pleasure within the realm of the temporally-uncanny is a fine one.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 Sep. 2026
  • Royals, who has typically sported some of the team’s most stylish hair, cut his dreads last week.
    — Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of dread
Noun
  • The push from key congressional candidates to end the war illustrates the growing GOP angst around a conflict that is deeply unpopular.
    — Zac Anderson, USA Today, 22 Sep. 2026
  • And nobody, not even my editors, has had to share more of my angst about the next deadline.
    — Mark Woods, Florida Times-Union, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of angst
Noun
  • But sequences in the film that show his inner torment serve an important purpose, says Primetime editor Daniel Garber.
    — Samantha Bergeson, Vanity Fair, 24 Sep. 2026
  • His wife later told the priest that her husband had felt relief for a few days, but that the real cause of his torment had probably been a brain tumor.
    — David Owen, New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of torment
Noun
  • And here’s where all the flash-forward business this season finally comes into thematic focus, imbuing the scene with an Old-Testament style foreboding.
    — Andy Andersen, Vulture, 6 Sep. 2026
  • On stage, the audience is the camera, peering into a cutaway of set designer Fly Davis’ ominous, two-story house, lit with foreboding foreshadowing by Anna Watson.
    — Frank Rizzo, Variety, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of foreboding
Noun
  • Bronny played regularly down the stretch last season and into the playoffs while Doncic and Reaves were sidelined by injury, teaming up with his father for significant minutes in the Lakers' first-round upset of the Houston Rockets.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Doug Jones is seeking a historic comeback in Alabama, while Democrats in Mississippi, Georgia, Louisiana and South Carolina are pursuing statewide wins and Senate upsets.
    — Kim Chandler, Los Angeles Times, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of upset

Browse Nearby Words

cold-eyed
cold feet
cold fish
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Cite this Entry

“Cold feet.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cold%20feet. Accessed 30 Sep. 2026.

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