thaw1 verbthaw2 noun
thawthaw1 /θɔː $ θɒː/ verb 
Word OriginWORD ORIGINthaw1
Verb TableOrigin:
Old English thawianVERB TABLE
thaw
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | thaw |
| he, she, it | thaws | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | thawed |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have thawed |
| he, she, it | has thawed | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had thawed |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will thaw |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have thawed |
| Continuous Form | ||
| Present | I | am thawing |
| he, she, it | is thawing | |
| you, we, they | are thawing | |
| Past | I, he, she, it | was thawing |
| you, we, they | were thawing | |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have been thawing |
| he, she, it | has been thawing | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had been thawing |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will be thawing |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have been thawing |
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
Thesaurus- As the Cold War thawed, defense budgets shrank.
- Put the chicken in the microwave to thaw it out.
- The lake is frozen all winter, but it usually thaws in March.
- The snow had started to thaw, and there was a faint scent of spring in the air.
- When the lakes start to thaw, it's dangerous to go skating.
- He rubbed one in his hands to thaw it for me and barked at Nina, the black-haired girl.
- I suggest wiring them up and trailing them overboard to thaw.
- It made her thaw a fraction towards him, in spite of herself.
- That night it freezes hard and next morning after a brief breakfast we thaw out the boat and set off again.
Longman Language Activatorwhen something becomes a liquid► melt
Collocations if something solid melts or if heat melts it, it becomes liquid: · The chocolate had melted and was all over the inside of her pocket.· Melt the butter in a saucepan and stir in the sugar.
► dissolve if something solid dissolves or if you dissolve it, it is added to a liquid and mixed with it, so that it become liquid itself: · The crystals dissolve in water to create a purple liquid.· Dissolve the salt in 125 ml of hot water.
► thaw if ice, snow, or a frozen lake or river thaws , it becomes a liquid because the temperature has become warmer: · The lake is frozen all winter, but it usually thaws in March.· The snow had started to thaw, and there was a faint scent of spring in the air.
► melt down to melt something such as a metal object, especially so that you can make it into something different: melt down something: · He melts down coins to make into earrings and ornaments.· Most of the brass in the church has been melted down and sold.melt something down: · We collected all the old candles and melted them down to make one big candle.
► molten molten rock, metal, glass etc has been made into a liquid by being heated to a very high temperature: · You can watch craftsmen make beautiful vases out of molten glass.· The town was buried under a river of molten lava.· Castings are made by pouring molten metal into a mould and allowing it to solidify.
► condense if gas or steam condenses , it becomes liquid by becoming colder: · Steam from the shower condensed on the cold bathroom mirror.· During cold nights, air condenses on the grass to form dew.condense into: · The gaseous metal is put in a closed container and cooled so that it condenses into liquid zinc.
► soluble a solid substance that is soluble can be mixed into a liquid so that it become part of it: · soluble aspirin· The use of soluble chemical fertilizers is banned, as they seep into rivers and pollute the water supply. be soluble in something: · There are two sorts of vitamins: some are soluble in fat, and some soluble in water. water-soluble/fat-soluble etc (=soluble in water, fat etc): · Plants take up water-soluble minerals through their roots.
WORD SETS► Cookingallspice, nounbake, verbbarbecue, verbbaste, verbblanch, verbboil, verbbottle, verbbouillon cube, nounbraise, verbbreadcrumbs, nounbreaded, adjectivebrine, nounbroil, verbbrown, verbbutter, verbcandied, adjectivecaper, nouncaramel, nouncardamom, nouncarve, verbcasserole, nouncasserole, verbcaster sugar, nouncharbroil, verbchervil, nounchestnut, nounchicory, nounchill, verbchilli powder, nounchip, verbcilantro, nouncinnamon, nounclean, verbclove, nouncochineal, nouncoconut, nouncook, verbcook, nouncookbook, nouncookery, nouncookery book, nouncordon bleu, adjectivecore, verbcoriander, nouncream, verbcrisp, verbcube, verbculinary, adjectivecumin, nouncurry powder, noundeep fry, verbdessertspoon, noundevilled, adjectivedice, verbdone, adjectivedress, verbessence, nounfat, nounflambé, adjectiveflan, nounflavouring, nounflour, nounflour, verbfrost, verbfrosting, nounfry, verbglaze, verbglaze, noungourmet, adjectivegourmet, noungrate, verbgrease, noungrease, verbgreaseproof paper, noungrill, verbgrill, noungrind, verbgut, verbhard-boiled, adjectivehaute cuisine, nounhob, nounhull, verbhusk, verbice, verbicebox, nounicing, nounicing sugar, nouningredient, nounjoint, verbknead, verblard, nounlard, verbleaven, nounliquidize, verbmarinade, nounmarinate, verbmarjoram, nounmicrowave, verbmince, verbmincer, nounmint, nounmix, verbmix, nounnouvelle cuisine, nounnutmeg, nounoil, nounolive oil, nounoverdone, adjectiveparboil, verbpare, verbpickle, verbpipe, verbpit, verbpitted, adjectivepkt, pluck, verbplum tomato, nounpoach, verbprecooked, adjectivepreheat, verbprep, verbprove, verbrecipe, nounreduce, verbrice paper, nounrind, nounrise, verbroast, verbroast, nounroast, adjectiverosemary, nounroux, nounsaffron, nounsage, nounsalt, nounsalt, verbsauce, nounsausage meat, nounsauté, verbsavory, nounscalloped, adjectivesear, verbseason, verbseasoning, nounself-raising flour, nounself-rising flour, nounsesame, nounshell, verbshortening, nounshort-order cook, nounshuck, verbsieve, verbsift, verbsifter, nounsimmer, verbsimmer, nounskewer, verbsmoke, verbsoak, verbsoda, nounsodium bicarbonate, nounspice, nounspice, verbspicy, adjectivestarch, nounsteam, verbsteep, verbstew, verbstock, nounstone, verbstrain, verbstuff, verbstuffing, nounsunny-side up, adjectivesweat, verbsweet-and-sour, adjectiveTabasco, nountandoori, adjectivetarragon, nountbsp, teaspoon, nountenderize, verbtenderloin, nountextured vegetable protein, nounthaw, verbthyme, nountimer, nountoast, nountoast, verbtoss, verbtruss, verbtsp, turmeric, noununderdone, adjectivevinaigrette, nounvinegar, nounwhip, verbwhisk, verbyeast, nounzap, verbzest, noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB► out
1[intransitive, transitive] (also thaw out) if ice or snow thaws, or if the sun thaws it, it turns into water OPP freeze: · That night it freezes hard and next morning after a brief breakfast we thaw out the boat and set off again.· And his new overcoat was thawed out and limp now.· He was brought in touch with reality, he was thawed out.· The veal in the clingfilm had now thawed out so he consigned it to the wastebasket.· What if she thawed out and is planning to garrotte Matthew Kelly with one of his own sparkly waistcoats?
The lake thawed in March.2it thaws if it thaws, the weather becomes warmer, so that ice and snow melt: It thawed overnight.3[intransitive, transitive] (also thaw out) to let frozen food become warmer until it is ready to cook OPP freeze: Thaw frozen meat in its packet and then cook as soon as possible.4[intransitive] to become friendlier and less formal: After a few glasses of wine Robert began to thaw a little.thaw out phrasal verb if your body thaws out, or if you thaw it out, it gets warmer until it is a normal temperature againthaw something ↔ out He held his hands in front of the fire to thaw them out.thaw1 verbthaw2 noun
thawthaw2 noun ExamplesEXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
word sets- the thaw in East-West tensions
- the spring thaw
- Brief thaws came often, but Provincetown seemed, in general, arctic and bereft.
- For a while, until the thaw or rain, these muddy tracks will be fossilised and time will stand still.
- Freezing at night, baking during the day, ice storms after spring thaw, all create a rugged habitat.
- In many places the thaw was complete, and he trudged through mud.
- Perhaps it was to exploit this slight sign of thaw that Eisenhower immediately afterwards invited Khrushchev to the United States.
- Rocks splintered by centuries of cyclic thaws crumbled under my boots.
- Yet the outburst of modernism which occurred in the thaw years, did not spring from a total void.
WORD SETS► Meteorology
Collocationsanticyclone, nounarid, adjectivebarometer, nouncirrus, nounclimate, nounclimatic, adjectivecloudbank, nouncold front, nouncontrary, adjectivecumulus, nouncyclone, noundeluge, noundepression, nounduster, noundust storm, nounequatorial, adjectivefront, nounfrontal system, nounheadwind, nounhumidity, nounhurricane, nouninversion, nounisobar, nounisotherm, nounjet stream, nounleeward, adjectivelow, nounlow-pressure, nounmaelstrom, nounmirage, nounmonsoon, nounnimbus, nounnorth, adjectivenortheast, adjectivenortheaster, nounnortheasterly, adjectivenortherly, adjectivenorthwest, adjectivenorthwester, nounnorthwesterly, adjectiveonshore, adjectivepeasouper, nounpowder, nounprecipitation, nounrainfall, nounrain gauge, nounrainstorm, nounsandstorm, nounsea breeze, nounsemitropical, adjectivesheet lightning, nounshipping forecast, nounshower, nounshowery, adjectivesirocco, nounsleet, nounslush, nounsmog, nounsouth, adjectivesoutheast, adjectivesoutheasterly, adjectivesoutherly, adjectivesouthwest, adjectivesouthwesterly, adjectivesprinkle, nounsquall, nounsqually, adjectivestill, adjectivestorm, nounstorm cloud, nounstormy, adjectivestrength, nounsubside, verbsubtropical, adjectivesub-zero, adjectivetailwind, nountempest, nounthaw, verbthaw, nounthermal, nounthermometer, nounthunder, nounthunder, verbthunderbolt, nounthunderclap, nounthundercloud, nounthunderstorm, nounthundery, adjectivetidal, adjectivetidal wave, nountornado, nountorrid, adjectivetrade wind, nountropical, adjectivetrough, nountsunami, nounturbulence, nounturbulent, adjectivetwister, nountyphoon, nounwarm front, nounwaterspout, nounweather, nounweatherman, nounweather vane, nounwest, adjectivewesterly, adjectivewhirlwind, nounwhiteout, noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSNOUN► spring
1[singular] a period of warm weather during which snow and ice melt: · The tops of the wedges are often covered with gravel and may be awash during the spring thaw.· Freezing at night, baking during the day, ice storms after spring thaw, all create a rugged habitat.· Usually dry throughout winter, they start with the onset of spring thaw.· It remained in place for a record seventy-eight days until April 11, when the spring thaw finally caused its breakup.· Surprisingly, before the spring thaw finally sets in, April can provide excellent rock climbing.· Vlasov's army was once again surrounded between Novgorod and Gruzino; and the spring thaw turned the forest into a swamp.
The thaw begins in March.2[countable] an improvement in relations between two countries, after a period of unfriendliness