We use a lot of cool cold idioms in English, but did you know that sometimes they have nothing to do with the temperature? That’s because idioms have a figurative meaning so we can’t take them literally.
Here you can learn the meaning of ‘catch a cold’, ‘chill out’, and other cold idioms, with examples to demonstrate exactly how to use them.
Cold idioms
Catch a cold
Probably one of the best-known cold idioms is catch a cold. This refers to becoming ill with the common cold; a viral infection which is usually harmless but might give you a sore throat, a runny nose, a cough, or a headache.
“Lesley has caught a cold so we will have a quiet weekend at home.”
“I always catch a cold around this time of year.”
You could also say that you are coming down with a cold if you feel like you are just starting to experience the symptoms.
We have more health and sickness idioms for you to discover in a separate article.
Give someone the cold shoulder
To give someone the cold shoulder means to deliberately treat them with indifference, coldness, or disregard.
“I thought Jake and I were getting on well but now he’s giving me the cold shoulder.”
Leave (someone) out in the cold
If you leave someone out in the cold, you ignore them or exclude them from a particular activity.
“I feel like I’ve been left out in the cold with this family camping trip.”
Cold snap
A cold snap is a period of unusually cold weather at a time when you would expect it to be warmer.
“This cold snap is going to kill off all my spring flowers.”
This one also appears on our list of winter idioms.
Out cold
Someone who is out cold is either unconscious or in a very deep sleep. You’ll have to use the context to determine which meaning applies!
“The kids were out cold as soon as we got home; they had a tiring day.”
“Davey was knocked out cold in the second round of the boxing match.”
We could also say out like a light to refer to someone who is fast asleep – view some more sleeping idioms here.
Cold light of day
When you look at something in the cold light of day, it means you consider it more rationally, unemotionally, and calmly than when it first occurred.
“In the cold light of day, our argument over who would wash the dishes seemed rather petty.”
“Looking at these sales figures in the cold light of day, I can see the business is in serious trouble.”
Cold facts / truth
Similarly, cold facts are facts without any opinion or emotion added in. This can also be the cold truth, and you may often hear the phrase cold, hard facts used in the same way.
“If we look at the cold facts, it really doesn’t make sense to buy this house, no matter how charming it is.”
“The cold truth of the matter is that she doesn’t love me any more.”
Explore some more truth idioms here (and a few about lies).
Cold turkey
The idiom cold turkey refers to immediately and completely stopping something. It used to refer mainly to drug usage, but nowadays we can use it to talk about quitting any kind of habit.
“If you want to stop smoking, it’s best to quit cold turkey.”
“That game app was taking up way too much of my time. I’ve deleted it from my phone and now I’m going cold turkey.”
You can use cold turkey as an adverb phrase, or you may talk about going cold turkey.
Break out in a cold sweat
You break out in a cold sweat when you are anxious, nervous, or frightened. It’s different from the type of sweat that comes from exercising or being too hot.
“He broke out into a cold sweat at the thought of doing a presentation in front of the class.”
Make your blood run cold
If something shocks, horrifies, or frightens you, you could say it makes your blood run cold or makes your blood freeze.
“Reading this murder mystery book made my blood run cold.”
Another scary idiom you could use in this situation is send chills down your spine.
This is in contrast to making your blood boil, which is an anger idiom.
Cold-hearted
Someone who is cold-hearted seems to have no love, emotion or compassion. You may also say they have a cold heart or a heart of stone.
“My auntie always seems so cold-hearted towards me and my brother.”
You won’t be needing any of these love idioms to describe them!
Stone cold
Stone cold has a similar meaning to cold-hearted; it describes someone who lacks any emotion, feeling or concern. It can also just mean very cold.
“She was such a sweet young girl, I don’t understand how she became a stone cold killer.”
“Why are you home so late? Your dinner is stone cold.”
Cold comfort
A cold comfort is something that was supposed to be comforting but actually provided no comfort, reassurance or consolation at all.
“After Ishmael failed the test, it was cold comfort to know many of his friends had done the same.”
Did you know that this is an example of a Shakespearean idiom?
Get cold feet
If you get cold feet, you change your mind about something.
“Don’t tell me you’re getting cold feet two days before your wedding?”
Read more idioms using parts of the body.
Cold one
On a lighter note, cold one is an idiom mainly used in countries that use British English. It means a cold beer!
“I love to relax in the garden with a couple of cold ones on a Saturday afternoon.”
More cold-related idioms with ‘chill’ and ‘cool’
The following expressions don’t use the word ‘cold’ but they have a similar theme.
Chill out
To chill out means to become calmer or to calm down, and is often used as an imperative (command). It can also mean simply to relax.
“I know this is a difficult situation but everyone please chill out!”
“I’m going to spend the day chilling out on the beach.”
Note that chill out is fairly informal, so it’s best kept for situations with people you know quite well. Calm down is slightly less casual. Find more ways to talk about relaxing here.
Take a chill pill
If someone needs to chill out, you could also tell them to take a chill pill. Again, this is an informal idiom.
“Why are you getting stressed over which shoes to wear? Just take a chill pill and let’s go!”
To accompany this, you might want to read up on some stress idioms too.
When hell freezes over
We say that something will happen when hell freezes over if we think it will never happen. It is usually said in a jovial way.
“You think I should run a marathon? When hell freezes over!”
A longer version of this cold idiom is when hell freezes over and the devil learns to ice skate.
Too cool for school
Somebody described as too cool for school may be well beyond school age, but they see themselves as very cool and fashionable and don’t want to involve themselves with anything that would seem dull or boring.
“Ever since Alan got that new acting job he thinks he’s too cool for school.”
We have many more idioms to describe fashionable people here.
Keep a cool head
To keep a cool head means to keep calm.
“I admire how Elena can keep a cool head in such a stressful situation.”
Keep (or lose) your cool
Similarly, to keep your cool means to remain calm. You can also lose your cool, meaning you fail to stay calm in a situation.
“Keep your cool and I’m sure you’ll pass your driving test.”
“I want to apologise to everyone on the team for losing my cool.”
Play it cool
To play it cool means to act calm even if you don’t feel it, or to avoid revealing much emotion or insecurity.
“When Ted said he wanted to end our relationship, I just played it cool.”
As cool as a cucumber
A fun one to finish off, although it’s a simile rather than a cool idiom. As cool as a cucumber is just an alliterative way to describe someone who is relaxed and composed, especially in stressful situations.
“Alanna was cool as a cucumber performing up on stage.”
So, that brings us to the end of this list of cold idioms. Did you discover some new expressions here? Or are there any other cool idioms you think should be on this list? Leave a comment to let us know! You might also want to check out these hot idioms and some more weather idioms to boost your English vocabulary.
