1
: completely cold
stone-cold soup
The weather was stone-cold and often gray, with a 20-mile-an-hour headwind scouring the backstretch.—
Lorna Lentini
—often used figurativelyLorna Lentinia stone-cold killer
… his stone-cold calculation was that he could score more money more quickly with a bat and glove.—Scott Burton
Scott Burton
US, informal
: absolutely, utterly
stone-cold sober
Walter Anderson was a stone-cold handsome guy, a tall, powerfully built man with a thick head of wavy blond hair …—Edgar Allen Beam
Edgar Allen BeamExamples of stone-cold in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Eric Francisco, Vulture, 19 Oct. 2024
There would be no reason to suspect Courtney Williams had evolved into a stone-cold killer who will never back down from a big shot with the game in the balance, nor that Alanna Smith is a tenacious defender capable of locking down bigs who trump her in size.
—Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 12 Oct. 2024
Smith appeared in comedy capers, Merchant Ivory classics and commercial juggernauts like the Harry Potter franchise, not to mention some stone-cold ’90s classics, The First Wives Club and Sister Act among them.
—Kerry McDermott, Vogue, 27 Sep. 2024
After her stone-cold expression went viral at the Paris Olympics, sharpshooter Kim Ye-Ji will play the role of an actual assassin in an upcoming Korean series.
—Sakshi Venkatraman, NBC News, 25 Sep. 2024
Giving a sobering speech, everyone in the room was stone-cold silent as the actor shared his passion for HIV and AIDS awareness.
—Allyson Portee, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Bob Odenkirk is reprising his role as mild-mannered family man who is secretly a former government assassin, while Sharon Stone is cast as the stone-cold villainess of the piece.
—Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Kyle Denis: In addition to Midwest Princess being stacked with stone-cold bangers, Chappell’s live show has really helped her exponential rise.
—Christine Werthman, Billboard, 6 Aug. 2024
This Gun for Hire (1942) Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake starred in a series of stone-cold classic crime thrillers during World War II and just after — a period when shadows grew more jagged and anti-heroes more complex, giving birth to the rise of film noir.
—Christina Newland, Vulture, 6 June 2024
Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 22 Feb. 2023
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of
Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback
about these examples.
Adjective
That being said, Flanagan’s closely studying William Friedkin’s stone-cold classic from 1973, but also – hold for cheers – The Exorcist III.
—Eric Francisco, Vulture, 19 Oct. 2024
There would be no reason to suspect Courtney Williams had evolved into a stone-cold killer who will never back down from a big shot with the game in the balance, nor that Alanna Smith is a tenacious defender capable of locking down bigs who trump her in size.
—Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 12 Oct. 2024
Smith appeared in comedy capers, Merchant Ivory classics and commercial juggernauts like the Harry Potter franchise, not to mention some stone-cold ’90s classics, The First Wives Club and Sister Act among them.
—Kerry McDermott, Vogue, 27 Sep. 2024
After her stone-cold expression went viral at the Paris Olympics, sharpshooter Kim Ye-Ji will play the role of an actual assassin in an upcoming Korean series.
—Sakshi Venkatraman, NBC News, 25 Sep. 2024
Giving a sobering speech, everyone in the room was stone-cold silent as the actor shared his passion for HIV and AIDS awareness.
—Allyson Portee, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Bob Odenkirk is reprising his role as mild-mannered family man who is secretly a former government assassin, while Sharon Stone is cast as the stone-cold villainess of the piece.
—Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Kyle Denis: In addition to Midwest Princess being stacked with stone-cold bangers, Chappell’s live show has really helped her exponential rise.
—Christine Werthman, Billboard, 6 Aug. 2024
This Gun for Hire (1942) Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake starred in a series of stone-cold classic crime thrillers during World War II and just after — a period when shadows grew more jagged and anti-heroes more complex, giving birth to the rise of film noir.
—Christina Newland, Vulture, 6 June 2024
Adverb
Now, 30 years after its initial release, the song is a stone-cold ’90s country classic and has been a mainstay in Jackson’s concerts for the past three decades.
—Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 22 Feb. 2023
Dictionary Entries Near stone-cold
Cite this Entry
“Stone-cold.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stone-cold. Accessed 14 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share