freezing

[free-zing]

adjective

1. (of temperatures) approaching, at, or below the freezing point.

2. extremely or uncomfortably cold; chilled.

   We were both freezing and welcomed the hot cocoa.

3. beginning to freeze or partially frozen; frozen; in the process of being or becoming frozen. frozen.

freezing

/ ˈfriːzɪŋ /

adjective

1. informal,  extremely cold

Other Word Forms

• freezingly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of freezing¹

First recorded in 1605–15; freeze + -ing ²

Example Sentences

They involve freezing rents, increasing property taxes in “richer neighborhoods,” and no-cost child care up to age 5.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Bigger companies were able to front load their inventories in anticipation, and small businesses have been taking out loans and freezing hiring to keep from raising prices.

Read more on Salon

They offered not one redeeming feature as they slumped again, the visiting fans suffering as they made their way home from a freezing west London night.

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"There's no need to wash your hair in freezing cold water as it does nothing," she says.

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So gently evaporating the water off the juice and freezing the concentrate, allowed for transportability of a much better tasting product when water was later re-added.

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Related Words

• biting 
• chilly 
• frigid 
• frosty 
• glacial 
• icy 
• numbing 
• polar 
• wintry