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cold-blooded

American  
[kohld-bluhd-id] / ˈkoʊldˈblʌd ɪd /

adjective

  1. 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.

  2. without emotion or feeling; dispassionate; cruel.

    a cold-blooded murder.

  3. sensitive to cold.

cold-blooded British  

adjective

  1. having or showing a lack of feeling or pity

    a cold-blooded killing

  2. informal particularly sensitive to cold

  3. Technical term: poikilothermic.  (of all animals except birds and mammals) having a body temperature that varies with that of the surroundings

"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
cold-blooded Scientific  
/ kōld′blŭd′ĭd /

  1. Having a body temperature that changes according to the temperature of the surroundings. Fish, amphibians, and reptiles are cold-blooded.

Other Word Forms

  • cold-bloodedly adverb
  • cold-bloodedness noun

Etymology

Origin of cold-blooded

First recorded in 1585–95

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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.

Put a cold-blooded spin on it and “Sinners” is now the biggest loser in Oscars history, ceding 12 of its 16 record-breaking nominations to other films.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 16, 2026

They were cold-blooded, for one thing, and probably resembled lizards.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 10, 2026

At the heart of it, I believe this is a simple, straightforward, cold-blooded quest for power.

From Slate • Nov. 22, 2025

This one is all about a cold-blooded winning of Test matches.

From BBC • Jul. 15, 2025

I’d never forget the cold-blooded look in Luno’s eyes when he saw us standing in Dusty’s ticket shack.

From "Flush" by Carl Hiaasen

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.