fri:z v. & n. --v. (past
froze;
past part. frozen) 1 tr. & intr. a
turn or be turned
into ice or
another solid by
cold. b (often foll. by
over, up)
make or
become rigid or solid as a
result of
the cold. 2 intr. be or
feel very cold. 3 tr. & intr.
cover or become covered
with ice. 4 intr. (foll. by
to, together)
adhere or be fastened by
frost (the curtains froze to the window). 5 tr.
preserve (food) by refrigeration
below freezing-point. 6 tr. & intr. a make or become motionless or
powerless through fear,
surprise, etc. b
react or
cause to react with
sudden aloofness or
detachment. 7 tr.
stiffen or
harden,
injure or
kill, by chilling (frozen to death). 8 tr. make (credits, assets, etc.) temporarily or permanently
unrealizable. 9 tr.
fix or
stabilize (prices, wages, etc.) at a
certain level. 10 tr.
arrest (an action) at a certain
stage of
development. 11 tr. arrest (a
movement in a film) by repeating a
frame or
stopping the
film at a frame. --n. 1 a
state of frost; a
period or the
coming of frost or very cold
weather. 2 the fixing or stabilization of prices, wages, etc. 3 a film-shot in
which movement is arrested by the
repetition of a frame. øfreeze-dry (-dries, -dried) freeze
and dry by the sublimation of ice in a
high vacuum.
freeze-frame =
sense 3 of n. freeze on to colloq.
take or
keep tight hold
of. freeze
out US colloq.
exclude from business,
society, etc. by
competition or
boycott etc. freeze up
obstruct or be obstructed by the
formation of ice. freeze-up n. a period or conditions of
extreme cold. freezing-mixture
salt and
snow or
some other mixture used to freeze liquids. freezing-point the
temperature at which a
liquid,
esp.
water, freezes. freezing works
Austral. & NZ a
place where animals are slaughtered and carcasses
frozen for export. frozen
mitt colloq. a
cool reception. øøfreezable adj. frozenly adv. [OE freosan f. Gmc]