cold snap

noun

1. a sudden onset of a relatively brief period of cold weather.

cold snap

noun

1. a sudden short spell of cold weather

Word History and Origins

Origin of cold snap¹

An Americanism dating back to 1770–80

Idioms and Phrases

Also, cold spell. A short period of unusually cold weather, as in The recent cold snap has threatened the crop. The first expression presumably likens snap in the sense of “a sudden bite or cut” to sudden unexpected cold. The variant is more obvious, spell having been used in the sense of “a bout or turn at something” since the early 1700s. [Early 1800s]

Example Sentences

Snow has swept across parts of the UK as a cold snap continues.

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Travellers have been warned to expect delays in some parts of the UK as a cold snap continues and some areas wake to snowy and icy conditions on Wednesday.

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The cold snap comes as people rally together to help residents and business owners recover from unprecedented flooding in Monmouth, Wales.

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U.S. natural gas futures rose for a third consecutive week as the market prepared for the first cold snap of the season that’s expected to raise demand in coming days.

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Then there are my people, weak-kneed types who, come winter, wonder whether they can survive yet another cold snap.

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Related Words

• cold spell www.thesaurus.com
• cold wave 
• cold weather www.thesaurus.com