freezing

Everyday

1. Freezing means very cold. tree →
2. As a verb form, freezing means turning from a liquid into a solid because it gets cold, like water turning into ice. tree →
3. Freezing point is the temperature at which a liquid becomes solid. tree →
4. Freezing can mean suddenly stopping still, like when you are scared. tree →

In the lessons

In science, water freezes at 0 °C (32 °F); below freezing, puddles turn to ice and roads get icy. Freezing is the opposite of melting and is a reversible change. In everyday life, «I'm freezing!» means I'm very cold; wrap up warm, wear a hat and gloves. In safety, freezing weather can cause frostbite and slippery paths. Phrases: freezing cold, below freezing, freezing point, freezing fog.

Examples

• It's freezing outside; put on your coat! tree →
• Water starts freezing at zero degrees Celsius. tree →
• The temperature dropped below freezing last night. tree →
• My hands are freezing. tree →
• We are freezing the leftover soup. tree →
• The pond is freezing over. tree →
• She stood freezing to the spot when she saw the snake. tree →
• In freezing weather, watch out for ice on the path. tree →
• Winter one year set in early, and it was freezing hard. tree →

Note

Freeze is irregular: freeze, froze, frozen. «Freezing» = very cold, a bit stronger than «cold». In temperature problems, numbers below 0 °C are negative: −5 °C is 5 degrees below freezing.