cold comfort

noun

1. slight or negligible comfort; scarce consolation.

Word History and Origins

Origin of cold comfort¹

First recorded in 1565–75

Idioms and Phrases

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.

Example Sentences

Europe puts out advice on fixing international data transfers that’s cold comfort for FacebookLegal clouds gather over US cloud services, after CJEU ruling

From TechCrunch

Facebook’s EU-US data transfers face their final countdownEurope puts out advice on fixing international data transfers that’s cold comfort for FacebookEurope’s top court strikes down flagship EU-US data transfer mechanism

From TechCrunch

It may be cold comfort, but that’s a bargain when you consider how many AMG models easily top $100,000.

From Washington Blade

Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons This novel won the literary Prix Femina Étranger.

From The Daily Beast

Yet the fact that innovation is a wonderful, exciting thing is cold comfort to the man who feels he has become obsolete.

From The Daily Beast

Yet this theoretical resolution is cold comfort to same-sex couples living in the many states that maintain marriage bans.

From The Daily Beast

And if they lose this battle while aiming to win the larger war, it will be cold comfort on the morning of Nov. 7th.

From The Daily Beast

Although phone calls provide cold comfort, the situation of detained journalists remains critical.

From The Daily Beast

You will have heard by now the sad news of your husband's death, and it is but cold comfort to offer you my sincerest sympathy.

From Project Gutenberg

"Yes, but you have had it with a vengeance; and I doubt not that your apparent contentment is but cold comfort," continued Glenn.

From Project Gutenberg

Do be reasonable, and listen to reason, though God knows you can be in no mood for such cold comfort!

From Project Gutenberg

"I get a sort of cold comfort from the thought of that city," he said.

From Project Gutenberg

This was cold comfort to Carrie, who was painfully conscious of having been a particularly silly school-girl just then.

From Project Gutenberg