frosty

C1 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˈfɹɔsti/ UK /ˈfɹɒsti/ See IPA manual

Freq #14901

Meanings

1

adj
Very cold, with frost in the air.

The air was frosty, and I could see my breath as I walked.
2

adj
Covered with a thin layer of frost.

The car windows were frosty and had to be scraped before driving.
3

adj
Unfriendly and cold in manner.

After the divorce, she was polite but frosty toward her ex-husband.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · very cold, with frost in... chill chilly cold icy

2 adj · covered with a thin layer... frostedrimed

3 adj · unfriendly and cold in manner. aloof cold cool distant

Word family

Forms frostierfrostiest

Derived forms frostilyfrostinessunfrosty

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

frosty glass
A drinking glass covered with a thin layer of frost.

Adjective + noun

Etymology

From Middle English frosty, forsty, from Old English forstiġ, fyrstiġ (“frosty”), from Proto-West Germanic *frostag, *frustīg, By surface analysis, frost + -y. Cognates Cognate with West Frisian froastich (“frosty”), Dutch vorstig (“frosty”), German Low German fröstig (“frosty”), German frostig (“frosty”), Swedish frostig (“frosty”). Compare also Saterland Frisian froasterch (“frosty”), German Low German frösterg (“frosty”).

frosty Middle English forstiġ Old English *frostag Proto-West Germanic

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# frosty

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /ˈfɹɔsti/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈfɹɒsti/
**Frequency rank:** 14901

## Meanings
1. Very cold, with frost in the air.
2. Covered with a thin layer of frost.
3. Unfriendly and cold in manner.

## Examples
- The air was frosty, and I could see my breath as I walked.
- The car windows were frosty and had to be scraped before driving.
- After the divorce, she was polite but frosty toward her ex-husband.

## Derived Forms
- frostily
- frostiness
- unfrosty

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: frosty
- Root: forstiġ
- Root: *frostag

## Etymology
From Middle English frosty, forsty, from Old English forstiġ, fyrstiġ (“frosty”), from Proto-West Germanic *frostag, *frustīg, By surface analysis, frost + -y. Cognates Cognate with West Frisian froastich (“frosty”), Dutch vorstig (“frosty”), German Low German fröstig (“frosty”), German frostig (“frosty”), Swedish frostig (“frosty”). Compare also Saterland Frisian froasterch (“frosty”), German Low German frösterg (“frosty”).

## AI Etymology
Frosty is from Middle English frosty, forsty, from Old English forstiġ, fyrstiġ (“frosty”), from Proto-West Germanic *frostag, *frustīg, By surface analysis, frost + -y. Cognates include Cognate with West Frisian froastich (“frosty”), Dutch vorstig (“frosty”), German Low German fröstig (“frosty”), German frostig (“frosty”), Swedish frostig (“frosty”). Compare also Saterland Frisian froasterch (“frosty”), German Low German frösterg (“frosty”). In present-day use, it can mean very cold, with frost in the air, or covered with a thin layer of frost. Derived formations include frostily, frostiness, unfrosty.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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