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Synonyms

in a cold sweat

Idioms  

  1. Feeling nervous or terrified, as in When I looked over the cliff, I broke out in a cold sweat. This expression refers to perspiring accompanied by a feeling of cold, which can be induced by acute fear as well as by fever. [Late 1700s]

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.

As the harried solo parent of a sick child, Byrne lets the camera zoom in so close to her character’s insecurities that the audience breaks out in a cold sweat.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 10, 2026

Charles Green, Imran Ahmad, Derek Llambias, Barry Leach, David Somers - all these and more still have the capacity to make some on the current board break out in a cold sweat.

From BBC • Sep. 24, 2024

"Even when I realise I am not in Kuta traffic, I can shake in fear, break out in a cold sweat and feel really scared."

From Reuters • Oct. 11, 2022

Even the most devoted cat owners wonder at some point, perhaps waking up in a cold sweat in the middle of the night, whether their cat really loves them.

From Scientific American • Oct. 5, 2022

I woke up early the next morning in a cold sweat.

From "From the Desk of Zoe Washington" by Janae Marks

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.