Meanings
nounfreeze-up (plural freeze-ups)
plural freeze-ups
- The blocking of pipes due to freezing.
- A period of extremely cold, freezing weather.
The heaters, the S.R. now says, will "help tremendously" if there is severe snow and ice—a welcome change of tune from last winter, when the Region was countering criticism of its operation during the January freeze-up with a bland defence of existing precautions [...].
1962 December, “Talking of Trains: Point heaters on the S.R.”, in Modern Railways, page 371 - climatologyThe start of the time when surface waters are frozen over.
Synonyms & antonyms
antonym(s) of “seasons”
Opposite
Origin
Deverbal from freeze up.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
French gel
- gelwater freeze-up season
Cite this entry
APA
freeze-up. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/freeze-up
MLA
“freeze-up.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/freeze-up. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “freeze-up,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/freeze-up.
Source: freeze-up on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.