freezing

1 of 2

adjective

freez·​ing ˈfrē-ziŋ 

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

2

: 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

freezing

2 of 2

noun

: the temperature at which water freezes

temperatures dipping below freezing

Synonyms

Adjective

• algid
• arctic
• bitter
• bone-chilling
• chill
• chilly
• cold
• coldish
• cool
• coolish
• frigid
• frosty
• gelid
• glacial
• ice-cold
• icy
• nipping
• nippy
• numbing
• polar
• shivery
• snappy
• wintry
• wintery

Examples of freezing in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

On Saturday, more than 250 people lined up along the sidewalk waiting for Dearborn Music's doors to open, sitting in foldable lawn chairs and wrapped in thick blankets with hot beverages in hand to warm their freezing fingers in the early-morning upper-30s temperatures. —Kylie Martin, Detroit Free Press, 20 Apr. 2024

They are found in every ocean, from the freezing Arctic and Antarctic regions to temperate and even tropical waters. —Jake Parks, Discover Magazine, 19 Apr. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

circa 1616, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun

1777, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing freezing

• freezing cold
• freezing point
• freezing rain