Thaw Definition
thô
thawed, thawing, thaws
verb
thawed, thawing, thaws
To change from a frozen solid to a liquid by gradual warming.
American Heritage
To pass to an unfrozen state.
Webster's New World
To become liquid or semiliquid; melt.
Webster's New World
To cause to thaw.
Webster's New World
To have its contents melt.
Underground water pipes thaw in the spring.
Webster's New World
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
- freeze
- grow cool. See syn. study at melt.melt
- harden
- grow cool
- refrigerate
- congeal
- stiffen
noun
thaws
The act of thawing.
Webster's New World
A spell of weather warm enough to allow thawing.
Webster's New World
A relaxation of reserve, restraints, or tensions.
American Heritage
A becoming less reserved in manner.
Webster's New World
A mutual softening of hardline stances by opposed countries, factions, etc., as through a resumption of dialogue or negotiation.
Webster's New World
Synonyms:
Origin of Thaw
-
From Middle English thowen, thawen, from Old English þāwian (“to thaw"), from Proto-Germanic *þawōnÄ…, *þawjanÄ… (“to thaw, melt"), from Proto-Indo-European *tāw- (“to melt"). Cognate with Scots thow (“to thaw"), West Frisian teie (“to thaw, melt"), Dutch dooien (“to thaw"), German tauen (“to thaw"), Swedish töa (“to thaw"), Icelandic þeyja (“to thaw"), Latin tābÄ“s (“melting, wasting away") and Albanian thaj (“to dry (up), to thaw"), Polish tajać (“to thaw").
From Wiktionary
Middle English thawen from Old English thawian
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
Thaw Is Also Mentioned In
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