curdle

[ kur-dl ]
See synonyms for curdle on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with or without object),cur·dled, cur·dling.
  1. to change into curd; coagulate; congeal.

  2. to spoil; turn sour.

  1. to go wrong; turn bad or fail: Their friendship began to curdle as soon as they became business rivals.

Idioms about curdle

  1. curdle the / one's blood, to fill a person with horror or fear; terrify: a scream that curdled the blood.

Origin of curdle

1
First recorded in 1580–90; curd + -le

Other words from curdle

  • curdler, noun
  • non·cur·dling, adjective, noun
  • un·cur·dled, adjective
  • un·cur·dling, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use curdle in a sentence

  • But they were met by the main body of guerrillas and all came charging with blood curdling yells.

  • Doubtless the captain reported on his arrival home a blood-curdling story of his encounter with pirates off the coast of Cuba.

  • Surely no wilder phantasy, no more outrageous, blood-curdling nightmare ever entered the most disordered brain.

  • Roused from sound slumbers by blood-curdling Indian war whoops, a few escaped, but only to die of cold on their way to Albany.

    The Story of the Thirteen Colonies | H. A. (Hlne Adeline) Guerber
  • It came quickly, mingled with a blood-curdling yell from a hundred or more savage throats.

    The Argus Pheasant | John Charles Beecham

British Dictionary definitions for curdle

curdle

/ (ˈkɜːdəl) /


verb
  1. to turn or cause to turn into curd

  2. curdle someone's blood to fill someone with fear

Origin of curdle

1
C16 (crudled, past participle): from curd

Derived forms of curdle

  • curdler, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012