Meanings
- idiomaticforever; without success, no matter how long one perseveres.
I am prepared to wait for my answer until hell freezes over.
2 more examples
He can continue to be hard on himself until hell freezes over, because he's so self-centeredly pessimistic that there's nothing I can ever do to lighten him up.
They can be bellyaching to me about their life's problems until hell freezes over, but it doesn't mean that they'll ever get my sympathy.
Synonyms: until the cows come home
Synonyms & antonyms
prepositional phraseforever; without success, no matter how long one perseveres.
Cite this entry
until hell freezes over. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/until%20hell%20freezes%20over
“until hell freezes over.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/until%20hell%20freezes%20over. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “until hell freezes over,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/until%20hell%20freezes%20over.
Source: until hell freezes over on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.