cold front
Americannoun
noun
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the boundary line between a warm air mass and the cold air pushing it from beneath and behind as it moves
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the line on the earth's surface where the cold front meets it
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The forward edge of an advancing mass of cold air that pushes under a mass of warm air. Cold fronts often cause precipitation; water vapor in the rising warm air condenses and forms clouds, often resulting in heavy rain, thunderstorms, hail, or snow. Winter cold fronts can cause temperatures to drop significantly. Summer cold fronts reduce humidity as drier, cooler air displaces the humid, warmer air. On a weather map, a cold front is depicted as a blue line with triangles that point in the direction in which the cold air is moving.
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Compare occluded front warm front See illustration at front
Etymology
Origin of cold front
First recorded in 1920–25
Compare meaning
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A brief cold front expected in the Northeast at the weekend offers immediate-term physical upside, he says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026
The change is being brought about by a cold front that has been moving south-eastwards through Friday and Friday night, introducing winds from a cooler north-westerly direction, as well as bringing a few showers.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
Cooler conditions and some rain are on the way for parts of UK on Thursday into the weekend, as a cold front moves into the UK.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026
Tuesday and Wednesday were both hot days, but the cold front moving in on Thursday drops the temperatures just below the threshold for many, meaning many areas narrowly miss the mark.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026
They were down from Alaska and Canada, migrating ahead of a cold front.
From "Frightful's Mountain" by Jean Craighead George
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