a degree or state of coldness sufficient to cause the freezing of water.
Also called hoarfrost. a covering of minute ice needles, formed from the atmosphere at night upon the ground and exposed objects when they have cooled by radiation below the dew point, and when the dew point is below the freezing point.
an opaque coating of tiny, white, granular ice particles, formed on the walls or contents of a freezer by the condensation of water vapor; rime.
the act or process of freezing.
coldness of manner or temperament.
We noticed a definite frost in his greeting.
Informal. a coolness between persons.
Informal. something that meets with lack of enthusiasm, as a theatrical performance or party; failure; flop.
a milkshake, frappe, or similar drink.
a chocolate frost.
to cover with frost.
to give a frostlike surface to (glass, metal, etc.).
to ice (a cake, cookies, etc.).
to bleach selected strands of (a person's hair) in order to create highlights.
to kill or injure by frost.
a freezing rain that badly frosted the tomato plants.
to make angry.
I was frosted by his critical comment.
to become covered with frost (often followed by up orover ).
The windshield has frosted over.
(of varnish, paint, etc.) to dry with a film resembling frost.
Sir David ( Paradine ). born 1939, British television presenter and executive, noted esp for political interviews
Robert ( Lee ). 1874–1963, US poet, noted for his lyrical verse on country life in New England. His books include A Boy's Will (1913), North of Boston (1914), and New Hampshire (1923)
a white deposit of ice particles, esp one formed on objects out of doors at night See also hoarfrost
an atmospheric temperature of below freezing point, characterized by the production of this deposit
degrees below freezing point: eight degrees of frost indicates a temperature of either –8°C or 24°F
informal something given a cold reception; failure
informal coolness of manner
the act of freezing
to cover or be covered with frost
(tr) to give a frostlike appearance to (glass, etc), as by means of a fine-grained surface
(tr) to decorate (cakes, etc) with icing or frosting
(tr) to kill or damage (crops, etc) with frost
A deposit of tiny, white ice crystals on a surface. Frost forms through sublimation, when water vapor in the air condenses at a temperature below freezing. It gets its white color from tiny air bubbles trapped in the ice crystals.
See more at dew point
First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English frost, forst; cognate with Old Saxon, Old High German, Old Norse frost; akin to freeze
Frost is a thin, icy coating that forms on very cold, damp nights. During a New England winter, you'll have to scrape frost off your car windshield almost every morning. Frost is made of tiny crystals of ice that appear white and tend to form on windows, the ground, trees, and cars. While frost can be lovely on a window, with its snowflake shapes and patterns, it can also be dangerous for farm crops if it forms unexpectedly early or late in the year. Frost comes directly from the Old English, and it has a Proto-Germanic root.
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With grandma’s nest egg and mom and dad’s retirement tied up in a young couple’s first home, even a slight chill in property valuations causes an arctic frost on consumer sentiment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
It is cold little chaos, packaged in cardboard and frost.
From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2026
Maybe I’ll still be kept warm by my summer odyssey come December, when frost whitens the lawn.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
"This measurement tells us this mini-Neptune indeed formed beyond the frost line, giving confirmation that this formation channel does exist."
From Science Daily ● May 7, 2026
Wherever he stepped, the grass, dirt, and stones turned white like frost.
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
“This removes a hurdle that prevented average taxpayers unfamiliar with complex tax rules for asking for penalty relief,” Frost said.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 8, 2026
On a sunny morning in the spring of 1997, Browne took to the podium at Stanford University’s open-air Frost Amphitheater to deliver a speech unlike anything ever heard from an oil executive.
From Salon ● Jun. 26, 2026
Dione Frost, organiser of the event in the small market town in West Yorkshire, says it's the biggest yet.
From BBC ● Jun. 20, 2026
The Knicks will take a 3-1 lead to San Antonio in the best-of-7 series on Saturday night, when they will have a chance close out the Spurs at the Frost Bank Center.
From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026
Everything turned fiery red and gold like in that Robert Frost poem in The Outsiders.
From "The First Rule of Punk" by Celia C. Pérez
This is holding daytime temperatures several degrees below the seasonal norm with some late-season frosts at night.
From BBC ● May 13, 2026
Further night frosts are expected in places during the week ahead.
From BBC ● May 9, 2026
Wet earth, plenty of sunshine and a lack of frosts have combined to give some plants a noticeable head start.
From BBC ● Apr. 19, 2026
As the growing season progresses, the plant puffs itself into a roughly spherical shape, until the first frosts, when it snaps off its stalk and waits to be blown across the landscape.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 17, 2025
Summer frosts damaged crops from North America to Asia, causing widespread famine, killing millions of people around the world.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
He went to the toilet, which is when he saw a flicker of orange through the frosted glass of the window.
From BBC ● Jun. 9, 2026
So, the mirrors were frosted, triggering a debate – not just about space, but also Singapore's fixation with orderliness, the low bar for people to complain, and its many, many rules.
From BBC ● Mar. 7, 2026
“You couldn’t see the fine details, but you could see everything else,” said Denise Milano Sprung of the frosted bathroom door of the hotel room she shared with her husband at the Calgary Airport Marriott.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 20, 2026
There’s Cereal Milk Cake, filled with cereal milk cheesecake mousse and frosted in a cereal milk frosting.
From Salon ● Jun. 22, 2025
I went to the window and through a small, round hole in the frosted windowpane I could see the whirling blades of the windmill.
From "Bless Me, Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya
“You can put your effort into glorifying your cake with frosting, dreaming up an exciting trim that puts your own label on it.”
From Salon ● Jun. 14, 2026
Every chocolate cake needs several ingredients for the batter, along with simple syrup to keep the layers moist, as well as frosting and sometimes decorations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 25, 2026
Everything else is just frosting on the cake.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 30, 2026
She punctuates the quip by taking a big bite, leaving a glob of frosting on her face.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 11, 2026
I slipped away later, after I’d rubbed the worst of the pink frosting out of my fur.
From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck
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.
