Cold describes something with a low temperature, the opposite of hot or warm. When you touch ice or step outside on a winter morning, you feel cold. Your body shivers when it gets cold, trying to warm itself up.

Temperature isn't the only thing that can be cold. A person's behavior can be cold too, meaning unfriendly, distant, or lacking warmth. If someone gives you a cold response to your friendly greeting, they're being unfriendly or dismissive. A cold stare shows no kindness or emotion.

When something goes cold, it can mean it's no longer active or relevant. A detective following a cold trail has lost track of the clues. In the game of hide-and-seek, you might tell someone they're getting cold when they move away from the hiding spot (and hot when they get closer).

The word appears in many expressions: getting cold feet means becoming nervous about doing something you planned, like performing in the school play.