(freezes, freezing, froze, frozen)
Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English.
1.
If a liquid or a substance containing a liquid freezes, or if something freezes it, it becomes solid because of low temperatures.
If the temperature drops below 0°C, water freezes...
The ground froze solid.
...the discovery of how to freeze water at higher temperatures.
...frozen puddles.
VERB: V, V adj, V n, V-ed, also V n adj
2.
If you freeze something such as food, you preserve it by storing it at a temperature below freezing point. You can also talk about how well food freezes.
You can freeze the soup at this stage...
Most fresh herbs will freeze successfully.
VERB: V n, V adv
3.
When it freezes outside, the temperature falls below freezing point.
What if it rained and then froze all through those months?
VERB: it V
•
Freeze is also a noun.
The trees were damaged by a freeze in December.
N-COUNT
4.
If you freeze, you feel extremely cold.
The windows didn't fit at the bottom so for a while we froze even in the middle of summer...
VERB: V
5.
If someone who is moving freezes, they suddenly stop and become completely still and quiet. (WRITTEN)
She froze when the beam of the flashlight struck her.
VERB: V
6.
If the government or a company freeze things such as prices or wages, they state officially that they will not allow them to increase for a fixed period of time. (BUSINESS)
They want the government to freeze prices...
VERB: V n
•
Freeze is also a noun.
A wage freeze was imposed on all staff earlier this month.
N-COUNT: with supp
7.
If a government freezes a plan or process, they state officially that they will not allow it to continue for a period of time.
Britain has already frozen its aid programme...
Diplomatic relations were frozen until August this year.
VERB: V n, V n
•
Freeze is also a noun.
...a freeze in nuclear weapons programs.
N-COUNT: with supp
8.
If someone in authority freezes something such as a bank account, fund, or property, they obtain a legal order which states that it cannot be used or sold for a particular period of time. (BUSINESS)
The governor's action freezes 300,000 accounts...
Under these laws, he said, Mr. Rice's assets could have been frozen.
VERB: V n, V n
•
Freeze is also a noun.
...a freeze on private savings.
N-COUNT: with supp
9.