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 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 And Indonesia isn’t the only country getting cold feet. — Jasmin Malik Chua, Sourcing Journal, 18 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
  • As housing costs rise, residency policies change, remote work matures, and global uncertainty reshapes long-term planning, prospective expats are looking beyond yesterday's relocation favorites.
    — Meggen Harris, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
  • Some state officials criticized the move as adding unneeded instability and uncertainty to running elections.
    — Oren Oppenheim, ABC News, 21 July 2026
Definition of uncertainty
Noun
  • Several hospital executives, lawyers, and others have raised doubts about CPSC’s claimed authority.
    — CNN Money, CNN Money, 27 July 2026
  • Head coach LaFleur's leadership is under intense scrutiny as his record has worsened, raising doubts about the team's ability to rebound.
    — Rob Reischel, Forbes.com, 26 July 2026
Definition of doubt
Noun
  • After a long moment of suspense, the show revealed Spaghetti & Meatball to be the correct answer.
    — Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 30 July 2026
  • Save the tedious paperwork for the IRS, and leave the mysteries, suspense, and plot twists to Agatha Christie.
    — Jamie Merisotis, Forbes.com, 29 July 2026
Definition of suspense
Noun
  • There’s no wonder or dread in this future — just the resigned acceptance that nothing is remarkable, despite all the nifty gadgets everyone has.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 24 July 2026
  • The fantasy series’ new season will also introduce the dread Nazgnagôl, Sauron’s Second Age ring-servants.
    — Debbie Day, Entertainment Weekly, 24 July 2026
Definition of dread
Noun
  • Just like in the darnkess cave, the snarling machine gun of thoughts—unanswered emails, to-dos, and angst about my 17 year old’s plans to travel the world alone—slowly fell silent.
    — Tim Neville, Travel + Leisure, 20 July 2026
  • Frustration over housing costs tracks with a broader trend of consumer angst amid inflation and the war with Iran.
    — Justin Papp, CNBC, 19 July 2026
Definition of angst
Noun
  • Sochor confessed to the crime, but her body has never been found − still a torment to her family.
    — Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 11 July 2026
  • By homing in on the psychological torment of winning the crown, the show offers a surprising detour from familiar carnage—while suggesting that disappointment over a seemingly ideal position can be as crushing as a defeat on the battlefield.
    — Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 6 July 2026
Definition of torment
Noun
  • In Nolan’s telling, his deceit and plundering portend the collapse of the Bronze Age—a foreboding warning about greedy, fading empires that feels a little too relevant.
    — Natasha O'Neill, Vanity Fair, 16 July 2026
  • As a result, the duo has written an exposé chock-full of anecdotes and reporting that range from the foreboding and concerning to the voyeuristic and absurd.
    — Joseph Konig, PEOPLE, 1 July 2026
Definition of foreboding
Noun
  • That reaction perhaps suggests that there have been more of these upsets than is the case.
    — Benjamin Wallace-Wells, New Yorker, 26 July 2026
  • March Madness has an American culture expectation of automatic bids, of Cinderella stories and upsets.
    — Jason Kirk, New York Times, 24 July 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 31 Jul. 2026.

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