freeze

I UK [friːz] / US [frɪz] verb
Word forms "freeze":
present tense I/you/we/they freeze he/she/it freezes present participle freezing past tense froze UK [frəʊz] / US [froʊz] past participle frozen UK [ˈfrəʊz(ə)n] / US [ˈfroʊz(ə)n]
**

1) [intransitive/transitive] if water freezes, or if something freezes it, it gets very cold and changes into ice

The lake freezes in winter.

frozen solid (= completely hard):

The water in the cat's bowl was frozen solid.

a) if a liquid freezes or something freezes it, it becomes solid because it has reached a low temperature

Liquid nitrogen freezes at minus 209 degrees Celsius.

b) if a substance freezes, or if something freezes it, it becomes very cold and hard

The soil had frozen.

c) if a pipe freezes, or if the weather freezes it, the water inside it becomes ice

d) if something such as a lock or a machine freezes, or if something freezes it, it gets stuck and cannot move

The blanket had frozen to the windscreen.

2) [transitive] to preserve food or drink by making it extremely cold in a freezer

You should freeze meat on the day that you buy it.

a) [intransitive] if food freezes, you can preserve it in this way

Strawberries don't freeze very well.

b) [transitive] if you freeze a human body or a part of the body, you preserve it by making it extremely cold

The embryos are frozen at minus 20 degrees and stored.

3) [intransitive] to feel extremely cold

You'll freeze if you go out in that thin coat.

freeze to death (= die from being very cold):

The lambs looked as if they had frozen to death in the snow.

4) [intransitive] if it freezes, the temperature of the air goes down to 0° Celsius or below

5) [intransitive] to stop moving and keep completely still

Freeze! Don't move a muscle!

Kate froze in horror when she saw all the blood.

frozen to the spot (= unable to move because you are frightened or shocked):

I stood frozen to the spot, unable to believe my eyes.

a) [intransitive] to stop moving or making progress

Their wine glasses frozen in mid-air, they all stared at me.

It seemed as though time had frozen.

b) [intransitive/transitive] computing if a computer screen freezes, or if something freezes it, the images on it become completely still and you cannot move them because there is something wrong with the computer

c) [transitive] to stop a video or film from moving forward, especially so you can look closely at one particular picture

6) [transitive] economics to say officially that the rate or level of something must stay the same and not increase

Wages were frozen until the end of December.

We are freezing prices at 2006 levels.

7) [transitive] to legally stop a supply of money from being available to someone

The courts have frozen her bank account.

freeze someone's assets (= stop someone selling their property to make money):

The company's assets could be frozen by the banks.

Phrasal verbs:

- freeze out

- freeze over

- freeze up

II UK [friːz] / US [frɪz] noun
Word forms "freeze":
singular freeze plural freezes
*

1) [countable] economics an official decision to prevent any increase in the number, level, or rate of something

a pay/wage/price freeze

freeze on:

There has been a freeze on the number of police officers.

2)

a) [singular] a drop in temperature to 0° Celsius or below

A freeze is expected tonight.

b) a period of time when the weather is extremely cold

the big freeze of 1941