chill
Americannoun
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coldness, especially a moderate but uncomfortably penetrating coldness.
the chill of evening.
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a sensation of cold, usually with shivering.
She felt a slight chill from the open window.
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a feeling of sudden fear, anxiety, or alarm.
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sudden coldness of the body, as during the cold stage of an ague.
fevers and chills.
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a depressing influence or sensation.
His presence cast a chill over everyone.
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lack of warmth of feeling; unfriendliness; coolness.
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Foundry. an inserted object or a surface in a mold capable of absorbing large amounts of heat, used to harden the surface of a casting or to increase its rate of solidification at a specific point.
adjective
verb (used without object)
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to become cold.
The earth chills when the sun sets.
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to be seized with a chill; shiver with cold or fear.
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Foundry. (of a casting) to become hard on the surface by contact with a chill or chills.
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Slang. to calm down; relax (often followed byout ).
verb (used with object)
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to affect with cold; make chilly.
The rain has chilled me to the bone.
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to make cool.
Chill the wine before serving.
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to depress; discourage; deter.
The news chilled his hopes.
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Foundry. to harden the surface of (a casting) by casting it in a mold having a chill or chills.
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Slang. to kill; murder.
idioms
noun
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a moderate coldness
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a sensation of coldness resulting from a cold or damp environment, or from a sudden emotional reaction
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a feverish cold
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a check on enthusiasm or joy
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a metal plate placed in a sand mould to accelerate cooling and control local grain growth
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another name for bloom 1
adjective
verb
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to make or become cold
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(tr) to cool or freeze (food, drinks, etc)
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(tr)
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to depress (enthusiasm, etc)
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to discourage
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(tr) to cool (a casting or metal object) rapidly in order to prevent the formation of large grains in the metal
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slang (intr) to relax; calm oneself
Synonym Usage
See cold.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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chillnessnoun
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overchillverb
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prechillverb (used with object)
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chillingadjective
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overchilladjective
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unchilledadjective
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well-chilledadjective
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chillinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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chillsimple
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chillssimple
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have chilledperfect
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has chilledperfect
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am chillingprogressive
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are chillingprogressive
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is chillingprogressive
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have been chillingperfect progressive
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has been chillingperfect progressive
Past
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chilledsimple
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had chilledperfect
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was chillingprogressive
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were chillingprogressive
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had been chillingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of chill
First recorded before 900; Middle English chile, Old English cele, ci(e)le “coolness”; cf. cool, cold; akin to Latin gelāre “to freeze,” gelum “frost, cold,” glaciēs “ice” ( see gelato, gelid, glacier)
Explanation
A sharp burst of cold air or icy temperatures is a chill. The chill of a January day in New England might make you dream of moving to New Mexico. You'll feel a chill when someone opens a window in the winter, or notice a chill in the air on a cool day in September. Another kind of chill makes you shiver, but it's caused by illness and fever rather than a cold breeze: "Symptoms of the flu include chills and headache." A cold attitude is also a chill, as when a chill in the room makes you realize your friends are angry at each other.
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.
See Examples For:
"Just, you know, chill, relax," Infantino said of Artan's plight.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026
“Retirement is not for me. As an entrepreneur, how do you just chill? You can never shut off.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 1, 2026
Heightened competition in broadband and the threat of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite-based internet service has put a chill on the sector, especially cable leaders Comcast and Charter Communications.
From Barron's ● Jun. 26, 2026
“The Commission’s actions threaten to upend decades of settled law and practice and chill critical protected speech, both with respect to The View and more broadly,” KTRK-TV said in the filing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 22, 2026
They talked in huddles, stamping their feet, their breath steaming in the chill evening air.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
The chills expanded nationally, then internationally, as the Bulls’ mystique grew and the NBA’s popularity exploded.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 21, 2026
Respiratory diphtheria often starts with fever or chills, a sore throat that can lead to breathing and swallowing difficulties, and be life-threatening.
From BBC ● May 26, 2026
Other users reported temperature-related symptoms such as chills, feeling cold, hot flashes, and fever-like sensations.
From Science Daily ● May 24, 2026
“The standard Ross held for us during pre-production was extreme to a point where if we didn’t give him chills, we couldn’t go into the studio to actually record,” Gatto says.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026
Jim had fallen ill a week after arriving at Williams and was fighting high fevers and chills.
From "Ambushed!" by Gail Jarrow
As temperatures in Britain soar, people say the option of a chilled red wine becomes all the more appealing.
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026
To serve an optimal chilled red wine, you shouldn't keep the bottle in the fridge overnight.
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026
Also make sure hot food is served piping hot, health officials say, and cold food should be kept thoroughly chilled.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
I borrowed that idea for these BLT-inspired chilled noodles.
From Salon ● Jul. 8, 2026
Ice cut from a pond in winter and stored beneath an open structure called the Temple chilled food and drinks in Virginia’s summer heat.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
They get back to her with this chilling message: “The calls are coming from inside the house.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
Red wine varieties that Moore, the wine tasting host, suggests chilling include Pinot Noir, Zweigelt and Gamay.
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026
While her portrayal of Dailey is agonizing, Ms. Colloff’s rendering of Paul Skalnik, a career criminal and the other man at the center of the book, is chilling.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
It could create a chilling effect, said Robert Thompson, director of Syracuse University’s Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026
Over at Brick's place in the afternoon, there's a bunch of us just chilling.
From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
