Don't Let These Words 'Send a Chill Down Your Spine'
There are many ways to say "cold" in English. Here are a few ways to talk about your own temperature or the weather.
When you or the weather are only a little cold, you can use the word "cool." If you are a bit colder than that, but still not very cold, you can say you are a little "chilly." You can also describe cold weather as chilly in the same way.
A "chill" is a feeling of coldness. English speakers say that there is a "chill in the air" when it's cold outside. But if something "sends a chill down your spine," it makes you feel nervous or scared.
When the weather is cool and dry, and the day is bright, you can say it's "crisp." Unlike other words for cold, however, this one can only be used to describe the weather.
If you are really cold, you can say you are "freezing." The word literally means "below 0 degrees Celsius," but it's not often used this way when talking about the weather or a person's temperature.
When the weather gets very cold, you might see a thin layer of ice on the ground. English speakers call this "frost," so you can call this type of weather "frosty."
But what about very, very cold weather? You can call extremely low temperatures "bitterly cold." Bitter is also used to describe very sharp and strong flavors, or feelings of resentment and anger.
