Chill vs. Freeze: What's the Difference?
Edited by Aimie Carlson || By Janet White || Updated on September 26, 2023
Chill means to cool without freezing, whereas freeze means to cool a substance below its freezing point, turning it solid.
Key Differences
Chill and freeze refer to different states of lowering temperature, with chill implying a cooling process not leading to solidification and freeze resulting in the solidification due to extreme cold. To chill is to subject something to cold temperatures to make it cool, but not harden, such as chilling a drink in the refrigerator. In contrast, to freeze means to lower the temperature of a substance below its freezing point, causing it to turn solid, as water does when it forms ice.
The intensity of cold required is a key difference between chill and freeze. Chilling generally involves exposure to cool temperatures, such as placing food in a refrigerator to preserve it, while not making it solid. On the other hand, freezing necessitates a substance reaching or going below its freezing point, typically involving much colder conditions like those in a freezer, which causes a change in the state of matter of the substance from liquid to solid.
Chill and freeze also have diverse applications. Chilling is commonly used in culinary contexts to refer to the cooling of food or drinks to a desirable temperature, usually above the freezing point. For example, one might chill a bottle of wine before serving. Freeze, conversely, is more versatile, applicable in scientific, meteorological, and culinary contexts, where it denotes the process of becoming solid due to low temperatures, like freezing rain or frozen food.
Furthermore, chill and freeze are used metaphorically in everyday language, depicting different levels of severity. A ‘chill’ atmosphere may imply a relaxed or slightly cold environment, while to ‘freeze’ might suggest an inability to move or act, often due to fear or shock, portraying a more intense or severe condition.
Comparison Chart
State of Matter
Does not change the state of matter; remains liquid.
Changes the state of matter, typically liquid to solid.
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Temperature Range
Involves lower temperatures but above freezing point.
Involves temperatures at or below the freezing point.
Applications
Predominantly culinary, for cooling food and drinks.
Diverse; in culinary, scientific, and meteorological contexts.
Metaphorical Use
Implies relaxation or mild cold.
Suggests immobility or inaction, usually due to shock or fear.
Intensity
Involves less intense cold.
Involves more intense cold, enough to solidify substances.
Chill and Freeze Definitions
Chill
Chill can also mean to relax or to spend time without any stress.
I prefer to chill at home during weekends.
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Freeze
Freeze refers to the act of causing something to be held motionless.
When he saw the ghost, he seemed to freeze in place.
Chill
It can describe causing something to become dispassionate or less ardent.
His arrogance put a chill on the conversation.
Freeze
To pass from the liquid to the solid state by loss of heat.
Chill
Chill can signify a feeling of fear or apprehension.
The sight of the haunted house sent a chill down my spine.
Freeze
To acquire a surface or coat of ice from cold
The lake froze over in January. Bridges freeze before the adjacent roads.
Chill
A moderate but penetrating coldness.
Freeze
To become clogged or jammed because of the formation of ice
The pipes froze in the basement.
Chill
A sensation of coldness, often accompanied by shivering and pallor of the skin.
Freeze
To be at that degree of temperature at which ice forms
It may freeze tonight.
Chill
A checking or dampening of enthusiasm, spirit, or joy
Bad news that put a chill on the celebration.
Freeze
To be killed or harmed by cold or frost
They almost froze to death. Mulch keeps garden plants from freezing.
Chill
A sudden numbing fear or dread.
Freeze
To be or feel uncomfortably cold
Aren't you freezing without a coat?.
Chill
Moderately cold; chilly
A chill wind.
Freeze
To become fixed, stuck, or attached by or as if by frost
The lock froze up with rust.
Chill
Not warm and friendly; distant
A chill greeting.
Freeze
To stop functioning properly, usually temporarily
My computer screen froze when I opened the infected program.
Chill
Discouraging; dispiriting
“Chill penury repressed their noble rage” (Thomas Gray).
Freeze
To become motionless or immobile, as from surprise or attentiveness
I heard a sound and froze in my tracks.
Chill
(Slang) Calm or relaxed
“As my meditation routine grew more stable...my already laid-back demeanor grew positively chill” (David Gelles).
Freeze
To become unable to act or speak, as from fear
Froze in front of the audience.
Chill
To affect with or as if with cold.
Freeze
To become rigid and inflexible; solidify
An opinion that froze into dogma.
Chill
To lower in temperature; cool.
Freeze
To convert into ice.
Chill
To make discouraged; dispirit.
Freeze
To cause ice to form upon.
Chill
(Metallurgy) To harden (a metallic surface) by rapid cooling.
Freeze
To cause to congeal or stiffen from extreme cold
Winter cold that froze the ground.
Chill
To be seized with cold.
Freeze
To preserve (foods, for example) by subjecting to freezing temperatures.
Chill
To become cold or set
Jelly that chills quickly.
Freeze
To damage, kill, or make inoperative by cold or by the formation of ice.
Chill
(Metallurgy) To become hard by rapid cooling.
Freeze
To make very cold; chill.
Chill
To calm down or relax. Often used with out.
Freeze
To immobilize, as with fear or shock.
Chill
To pass time idly; loiter.
Freeze
To chill with an icy or formal manner
Froze me with one look.
Chill
To spend time with someone in a relaxed manner; hang out together.
Freeze
To stop the motion or progress of
The negotiations were frozen by the refusal of either side to compromise.
Froze the video in order to discuss the composition of the frame.
Chill
A moderate, but uncomfortable and penetrating coldness.
There was a chill in the air.
Freeze
To fix (prices or wages, for example) at a given or current level.
Chill
A sudden penetrating sense of cold, especially one that causes a brief trembling nerve response through the body; the trembling response itself; often associated with illness: fevers and chills, or susceptibility to illness.
Close the window or you'll catch a chill.
I felt a chill when the wind picked up.
Freeze
To prohibit further manufacture or use of.
Chill
An uncomfortable and numbing sense of fear, dread, anxiety, or alarm, often one that is sudden and usually accompanied by a trembling nerve response resembling the body's response to biting cold.
Despite the heat, he felt a chill as he entered the crime scene.
The actor's eerie portrayal sent chills through the audience.
His menacing presence cast a chill over everyone.
Freeze
To prevent or restrict the exchange, withdrawal, liquidation, or granting of by governmental action
Freeze investment loans during a depression.
Froze foreign assets held by US banks.
Chill
An iron mould or portion of a mould, serving to cool rapidly, and so to harden, the surface of molten iron brought in contact with it..
Freeze
To anesthetize by chilling.
Chill
The hardened part of a casting, such as the tread of a carriage wheel.
Freeze
(Sports) To keep possession of (a ball or puck) so as to deny an opponent the opportunity to score.
Chill
A lack of warmth and cordiality; unfriendliness.
Freeze
The act of freezing.
Chill
Calmness; equanimity.
Freeze
The state of being frozen.
Chill
A sense of style; trendiness; savoir faire.
Freeze
A spell of cold weather; a frost.
Chill
Moderately cold or chilly.
A chill wind was blowing down the street.
Freeze
A restriction that forbids a quantity from rising above a given or current level
A freeze on city jobs.
A proposed freeze on the production of nuclear weapons.
Chill
Unwelcoming; not cordial.
Arriving late at the wedding, we were met with a chill reception.
Freeze
Especially of a liquid, to become solid due to low temperature.
The lake froze solid.
Chill
(slang) Calm, relaxed, easygoing.
The teacher is really chill and doesn't care if you use your phone during class.
Paint-your-own ceramics studios are a chill way to express yourself while learning more about your date's right brain.
Freeze
(transitive) To lower something's temperature to the point that it freezes or becomes hard.
Don't freeze meat twice.
Chill
(slang) "Cool"; meeting a certain hip standard or garnering the approval of a certain peer group.
That new movie was chill, man.
Freeze
(intransitive) To drop to a temperature below zero degrees celsius, where water turns to ice.
It didn't freeze this winter, but last winter was very harsh.
Chill
(slang) Okay, not a problem.
Sorry about that. —It's chill.
Freeze
To be affected by extreme cold.
It's freezing in here!
Don't go outside wearing just a t-shirt; you'll freeze!
Chill
(transitive) To lower the temperature of something; to cool.
Chill before serving.
Freeze
(intransitive) (of machines and software) To come to a sudden halt, stop working (functioning).
Since the last update, the program freezes after a few minutes of use.
Chill
(intransitive) To become cold.
In the wind he chilled quickly.
Freeze
(intransitive) (of people and other animals) To stop (become motionless) or be stopped due to attentiveness, fear, surprise, etc.
Despite all of the rehearsals, I froze as soon as I got on stage.
Chill
To harden a metal surface by sudden cooling.
Freeze
(transitive) To cause someone to become motionless.
Chill
To become hard by rapid cooling.
Freeze
(figuratively) To lose or cause to lose warmth of feeling; to shut out; to ostracize.
Over time, he froze towards her, and ceased to react to her friendly advances.
Chill
To relax; to lie back.
Chill, man, we've got a whole week to do it; no sense in getting worked up.
The new gym teacher really has to chill or he's gonna blow a gasket.
Freeze
To cause loss of animation or life in, from lack of heat; to give the sensation of cold to; to chill.
Chill
To "hang", hang out; to spend time with another person or group.
Hey, we should chill this weekend.
Freeze
(transitive) To prevent the movement or liquidation of a person's financial assets
The court froze the criminal's bank account.
Chill
To smoke marijuana.
On Friday night do you wanna chill?
Freeze
Of prices, spending etc., to keep at the same level, without any increase.
Chill
To discourage, depress.
Censorship chills public discourse.
Freeze
(Internet) To prevent from showing any visible change.
Some websites, such as YouTube, deliberately freeze the view count, intended to deter attempts to game the system.
Chill
A moderate but disagreeable degree of cold; a disagreeable sensation of coolness, accompanied with shivering.
Freeze
A period of intensely cold weather.
Chill
A sensation of cold with convulsive shaking of the body, pinched face, pale skin, and blue lips, caused by undue cooling of the body or by nervous excitement, or forming the precursor of some constitutional disturbance, as of a fever.
Freeze
A halt of a regular operation.
Chill
A check to enthusiasm or warmth of feeling; discouragement; as, a chill comes over an assembly.
Freeze
(computer) The state when either a single computer program, or the whole system ceases to respond to inputs.
Chill
An iron mold or portion of a mold, serving to cool rapidly, and so to harden, the surface of molten iron brought in contact with it.
Freeze
(curling) A precise draw weight shot where a delivered stone comes to a stand-still against a stationary stone, making it nearly impossible to knock out.
Chill
The hardened part of a casting, as the tread of a car wheel.
Freeze
A block on pay rises or on the hiring of new employees etc.
A hiring freeze;
A pay freeze
Chill
Moderately cold; tending to cause shivering; chilly; raw.
Noisome winds, and blasting vapors chill.
Freeze
A frieze.
Chill
Affected by cold.
Freeze
The act of congealing, or the state of being congealed.
Chill
Characterized by coolness of manner, feeling, etc.; lacking enthusiasm or warmth; formal; distant; as, a chill reception.
Freeze
To become congealed by cold; to be changed from a liquid to a solid state by the abstraction of heat; to be hardened into ice or a like solid body.
Chill
Discouraging; depressing; dispiriting.
Freeze
To become chilled with cold, or as with cold; to suffer loss of animation or life by lack of heat; as, the blood freezes in the veins.
Chill
To strike with a chill; to make chilly; to cause to shiver; to affect with cold.
When winter chilled the day.
Freeze
To congeal; to harden into ice; to convert from a fluid to a solid form by cold, or abstraction of heat.
Chill
To check enthusiasm or warmth of feeling of; to depress; to discourage.
Every thought on God chills the gayety of his spirits.
Freeze
To cause loss of animation or life in, from lack of heat; to give the sensation of cold to; to chill.
A faint, cold fear runs through my veins,That almost freezes up the heat of life.
A railroad which had a London connection must not be allowed to freeze out one that had no such connection.
It is sometimes a long time before a player who is frozen out can get into a game again.
Chill
To produce, by sudden cooling, a change of crystallization at or near the surface of, so as to increase the hardness; said of cast iron.
Freeze
The withdrawal of heat to change something from a liquid to a solid
Chill
To become surface-hardened by sudden cooling while solidifying; as, some kinds of cast iron chill to a greater depth than others.
Freeze
Weather cold enough to cause freezing
Chill
Coldness due to a cold environment
Freeze
An interruption or temporary suspension of progress or movement;
A halt in the arms race
A nuclear freeze
Chill
An almost pleasurable sensation of fright;
A frisson of surprise shot through him
Freeze
Fixing (of prices or wages etc) at a particular level;
A freeze on hiring
Chill
A sensation of cold that often marks the start of an infection and the development of a fever
Freeze
Change to ice;
The water in the bowl froze
Chill
A sudden numbing dread
Freeze
Stop moving or become immobilized;
When he saw the police car he froze
Chill
Depress or discourage;
The news of the city's surrender chilled the soldiers
Freeze
Be cold;
I could freeze to death in this office when the air conditioning is turned on
Chill
Make cool or cooler;
Chill the food
Freeze
Cause to freeze;
Freeze the leftover food
Chill
Loose heat;
The air cooled considerably after the thunderstorm
Freeze
Stop a process or a habit by imposing a freeze on it;
Suspend the aid to the war-torn country
Chill
Uncomfortably cool;
A chill wind
Chilly weather
Freeze
Be very cold, below the freezing point;
It is freezing in Kalamazoo
Chill
Chill refers to the act of cooling something to a lower temperature.
Let’s chill the soda before we drink it.
Freeze
Change from a liquid to a solid when cold;
Water freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit
Chill
Chill can mean a moderate but penetrating coldness.
There’s a chill in the air tonight.
Freeze
Prohibit the conversion or use of (assets);
Blocked funds
Freeze the assets of this hostile government
Freeze
Anesthetize by cold
Freeze
Suddenly behave coldly and formally;
She froze when she saw her ex-husband
Freeze
Freeze means to become hardened into ice or into a solid body.
The lake will freeze if the temperature drops any further.
Freeze
It can also mean to preserve something by rapidly chilling it.
You can freeze the leftovers for another day.
Freeze
Freeze denotes a halt or a stoppage, as in activities or operations.
The government decided to freeze all ongoing developmental projects.
Freeze
It describes being formally ordered to refrain from any action or activity.
The company's assets were subject to a freeze by the regulatory body.
FAQs
Does freeze mean to turn something into a solid?
Yes, freeze typically means to solidify a substance by cooling it below its freezing point.
Is chill more intense than freeze in terms of temperature?
No, chill is less intense, and temperatures are above the freezing point, while freeze is more intense, leading to solidification.
Can chill be used to describe a relaxed state?
Yes, chill can describe a state of relaxation or a stress-free condition.
Does chill mean to make something solid?
No, chill means to cool something, but not to the point of becoming solid.
Does freeze imply a halt or stoppage in terms of actions?
Yes, freeze can imply a halt or stoppage in actions or operations, often due to external orders or conditions.
About Author
Written by
Janet WhiteJanet White has been an esteemed writer and blogger for Difference Wiki. Holding a Master's degree in Science and Medical Journalism from the prestigious Boston University, she has consistently demonstrated her expertise and passion for her field. When she's not immersed in her work, Janet relishes her time exercising, delving into a good book, and cherishing moments with friends and family.
Edited by
Aimie CarlsonAimie Carlson, holding a master's degree in English literature, is a fervent English language enthusiast. She lends her writing talents to Difference Wiki, a prominent website that specializes in comparisons, offering readers insightful analyses that both captivate and inform.
