frost - Wiktionary, the free dictionary (original) (raw)

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

Frost on a leaf and grass.

Close-up look at frost crystals.

Proto-Indo-European *-tós

Proto-Indo-European *prustós

Proto-West Germanic *frost

Middle English frost

English frost

From Middle English frost, from an unmetathesized variant of Old English forst (“frost”), from Proto-Germanic *frustaz (“frost”), from Proto-Indo-European *prews- (“to freeze; frost”).

Cognate with Saterland Frisian Froast, Fröäst (“frost”), West Frisian froast (“frost”), Cimbrian bròst, vrost, vròst (“frost”), Dutch vorst (“frost”), German Frost (“frost”), Luxembourgish Frascht (“frost”), Vilamovian fröst (“frost”), Danish, Faroese, Icelandic, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, Swedish frost (“frost”), Latin pruīna (“hoarfrost, frost, rime, snow”). Related to freeze.

frost (countable and uncountable, plural frosts)

  1. A cover of minute ice crystals on objects that are exposed to the air. Frost is formed by the same process as dew, except that the temperature of the frosted object is below freezing.
  2. The cold weather that causes these ice crystals to form.
    • 1748, David Hume, Enquiries concerning the human understanding and concerning the principles of moral., London: Oxford University Press, published 1973, § 47:
      It is more probable, in almost every country of Europe, that there will be frost sometime in January, than that the weather will continue open throughout that whole month;
  3. (figurative) Coldness or insensibility; severity or rigidity of character.
  4. (obsolete) The act of freezing; the congelation of water or other liquid.
  5. A shade of white, like that of frost.
    frost:
  6. (slang, dated) A disappointment; a cheat.
  7. (television) A kind of light diffuser.
    • 2013, Alan Bermingham, Location Lighting for Television, pages 9–26:
      Frosts and diffusion are flame retardant and produce similar results except that some of the frosts are very subtle in their effects. For example: Hamburg Frost will soften the beam edge with little additional spread of the beam.

cover of minute ice crystals — see also ice

cold weather that would cause frost

Translations to be checked

frost (third-person singular simple present frosts, present participle frosting, simple past and past participle frosted)

  1. (transitive) To cover with frost.
  2. (intransitive) To become covered with frost.
    • 1975, Brian W. Blouet, Merlin P. Lawson, editors, Images of the Plains: The Role of Human Nature in Settlement, University of Nebraska Press, page 142:
      “The weather is pleasant while it frosted a little at night.”
  3. (transitive) To coat (something, e.g. a cake) with icing to resemble frost.
  4. (transitive, informal) To anger or annoy.
    I think the boss's decision frosted him a bit.
  5. (transitive) To sharpen (the points of a horse's shoe) to prevent it from slipping on ice.
  6. (transitive) To bleach individual strands of hair while leaving adjacent strands untouched.

to become covered with frost

to anger or annoy

to bleach individual strands of hair

From Old Norse frost.

frost c (singular definite frosten, not used in plural form)

  1. frost

From Old Norse frost.

frost n (genitive singular frosts, nominative plural **frost)

  1. frost

From Old English frost, forst, from Proto-West Germanic *frost, from Proto-Germanic *frustaz, *frustą. Cognate with Middle Dutch vorst, Middle High German vrost, Middle Low German vrost, Old Swedish frost.

frost (plural frostes)

  1. Cold or freezing weather; weather causing frost.
  2. Frost or rime; frozen dew or water droplets.
  3. Hail; precipitation below freezing temperature.
  4. (rare, figurative) Something with a chilling effect.

From Old Norse frost n.

frost m (definite singular frosten)

  1. frost

From Old Norse frost n.

frost m (definite singular frosten)

  1. frost

frost m

  1. alternative form of forst, produced by metathesis

From Proto-Germanic *frustaz. Cognate with Old English frost, Old Norse frost.

frost m

  1. frost

From Proto-Germanic *frustą, *frustaz, akin to Old English frost, Old High German frost.

frost n

  1. frost

From Old Norse frost, from Proto-Germanic *frustą, *frustaz.

frost c

  1. frost