gelid

USAGE SUMMARY

The word 'gelid' is a correct and commonly used word in written English.
It means extremely cold or icy. You can use 'gelid' to describe very cold weather, temperatures, or objects. Here are a few examples: 1. The gelid wind whipped through the streets, causing people to bundle up and hurry to their destinations. 2. Her hands were frozen from the gelid water as she tried to fish out her keys from the icy pond. 3. The mountaineers faced the challenge of scaling the gelid peak, risking frostbite and hypothermia. 4. The gelid air-conditioning in the office made everyone shiver and reach for their jackets. 5. The lake was a dangerous place to swim in the winter, as it remained gelid even during mild weather.

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

28 human-written examples

And we encounter a woman whose capacity for gelid retribution exerts a dramatic shaping influence on the life she shares with Groff – so much so that the marriage as it is described by her is not just cast in a different light, but fundamentally transformed.

Independent

The deftly wielded baton also shapes the music's character — whether, for example, the strings should burrow into a deep Straussian shag or the winds give off a gelid Stravinskyan glint.

The New Yorker

"The Telephone Company recognizes five holidays," a gelid voice replied.

The New Yorker

Sid submerged his entire head, eyes wide open, into the water, metallic-tasting, gelid with the flavor of the past night.

The New Yorker

The sea takes on a gelid hardness that makes falling waves feel as if they were made of concrete.

The New Yorker

The towpath is barely gelid,               edged with ice, and the water glowers and the sky glowers back.

The New Yorker

An early Cézanne-and-Rembrandt period gave way in the eighteen-nineties to unsettling comic studies like "Masks Watching a Tortoise" (the souvenir shop sold masquerade accoutrements) and "Bathers at Ostend," in which every gelid wave enfolds a cheerfully pornographic, voyeuristic, or scatological vignette.

The New Yorker

By league rules, James needed to take this bureaucratic step only if he stayed with his current team, a prospect that has caused the sun to shine (and palm trees to grow and storefronts to flourish) on the gelid shores of Lake Erie.

The New York Times

"Chef" is a cold meal, with Kip at its gelid center.

The New York Times - Books

As they watched male members in all states of arousal on the screen, "silence was gelid in the room".

The Guardian - Books

Narrated entirely in the first person, the first half of the novel spools by in a tickertape stream of rape and murder before Alex is caught by the police and subjected to "Ludovico technique" – a scientific method to "cure" criminals of their violent urges through emetic brainwashing – and Burgess turns his satirical spotlight on the state's gelid violence.

The Guardian - Books

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

While 'gelid' effectively conveys extreme coldness, consider your audience. In less formal contexts, simpler alternatives like 'icy' or 'freezing' might be more appropriate for better understanding.

Common error

Avoid using "gelid" to describe emotional coldness. While it technically refers to physical cold, using it in contexts requiring terms like "aloof" or "unfeeling" can sound awkward.

Linguistic Context

The primary grammatical function of "gelid" is as an adjective. It modifies nouns to describe something as extremely cold or icy, as seen in examples like "gelid waters" and "gelid shores" from Ludwig.

Expression frequency: Common

Frequent in

News & Media

100%

Less common in

Formal & Business

0%

Science

0%

Encyclopedias

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "gelid" is a grammatically correct adjective used to describe extreme coldness. As confirmed by Ludwig AI, it is suitable for formal contexts. Ludwig's examples, primarily drawn from reputable news and media sources such as The New Yorker and The Guardian, demonstrate its use in vivid descriptions. While effective in conveying intense cold, simpler alternatives may be more appropriate in informal settings. To avoid misuse, "gelid" should be reserved for physical coldness rather than emotional states.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

icy

A more common and general term for something covered in ice or extremely cold.

freezing

Implies a temperature at or below the freezing point of water.

glacial

Relates to glaciers or extremely cold temperatures, often implying a slow or gradual process.

frigid

A formal term denoting intense coldness, often used in scientific or technical contexts.

frosty

Suggests a surface covered with frost or a cold, unwelcoming demeanor.

bitterly cold

A more descriptive phrase emphasizing the unpleasant or painful aspect of the cold.

ice-cold

Emphasizes the coldness by directly associating it with ice.

arctic

Relates to the Arctic region or extremely cold temperatures typical of that region.

wintry

Suggests the characteristics of winter, including coldness and snow.

nipping

Describes a cold that is sharp and biting, causing a tingling or stinging sensation.

FAQs

How can I use "gelid" in a sentence?

You can use "gelid" to describe something extremely cold or icy, such as "The "gelid wind" cut through the streets" or "The water was "gelid to the touch"".

What words are similar to "gelid"?

Similar words include "icy", "freezing", "frigid", and "glacial". Each carries a slightly different nuance of coldness.

Is "gelid" a common word?

While "gelid" is a correct word, it is less common than alternatives like "cold" or "icy". It's more often found in descriptive writing and formal contexts.

Can "gelid" be used to describe emotions?

While technically referring to physical coldness, using "gelid" to describe emotions may sound unusual. Consider using words like "aloof", "unfeeling", or "cold" in such contexts.