cold-blooded
Americanadjective
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designating or pertaining to animals, as fishes and reptiles, whose blood temperature ranges from the freezing point upward, in accordance with the temperature of the surrounding medium; poikilothermic.
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without emotion or feeling; dispassionate; cruel.
a cold-blooded murder.
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sensitive to cold.
adjective
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having or showing a lack of feeling or pity
a cold-blooded killing
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informal particularly sensitive to cold
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Technical term: poikilothermic. (of all animals except birds and mammals) having a body temperature that varies with that of the surroundings
Other Word Forms
- cold-bloodedly adverb
- cold-bloodedness noun
Etymology
Origin of cold-blooded
First recorded in 1585–95
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.
But Eisenstein’s staging, and in particular the editing, create a microcosm of the authorities’ cold-blooded reaction to popular unrest across Russia.
He said the Croatian journalist was trying to "present me as a monster, as an inhuman, as someone who not only has no emotions, but is a cold-blooded murderer".
From BBC
And in helping Bertha, the children had caught the admiral’s eye, and now they, too, had become part of his cold-blooded moneymaking schemes.
From Literature
Need I mention that a gecko is a cold-blooded lizard?
From Salon
Speaking at the podium with a somber tone, Harbaugh said he met with Harris at halftime and described the running back’s demeanor as “cold-blooded,” adding that he told him: “You’ll be back, kid.”
From Los Angeles Times
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.
