cold comfort

American  

noun

1. slight or negligible comfort; scarce consolation.

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cold comfort Idioms  

1. Slight or no consolation. For example, He can't lend us his canoe but will tell us where to rent one—that's cold comfort. The adjective cold was being applied to comfort in this sense by the early 1300s, and Shakespeare used the idiom numerous times.

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Etymology

Origin of cold comfort

First recorded in 1565–75

Example Sentences

But for investors in bitcoin ETFs, this has probably been cold comfort.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 30, 2026

Yet this may be cold comfort to the Trump administration.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 26, 2026

That might be cold comfort to Americans who are still struggling to pay their bills.

From Barron's • Apr. 22, 2026

“Unrelated,” said his lawyers, which was cold comfort for everyone else.

From Slate • Mar. 25, 2026

Lacey distributes one piece of wintergreen gum to each of us, but it’s cold comfort.

From "Paper Towns" by John Green