1
as in detached
having or showing a lack of friendliness or interest in others
the attendant's cold-eyed stare discouraged any thoughts about having a conversation
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2
as in icy
lacking in friendliness or warmth of feeling
under the cold-eyed gaze of the director, I auditioned for the part
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Recent Examples of cold-eyed
Beneath them was a relentless worker and a cold-eyed political operator who, almost alone among the wives of French presidents, built a base of power that was her own.
—
ABC News, 6 June 2026
The setting, which changes from a blank Brutalism to a trailer-park-home installation suggesting one of Arnold’s cold-eyed dioramas, creates its own theatrical coup.
—Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 3 June 2026
In this sense, though Trump is impulsive and narcissistic while Sacks is cold-eyed and logical, they are well matched.
—George Packer, The Atlantic, 4 May 2026
Played by a Colman Domingo who is done up to look the most wax figurine of them all in a shellacking of makeup, prosthetics, and colored contacts, Joe is always either giving an avaricious open-mouthed leer or a cold-eyed glare.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 23 Apr. 2026
Cats and dogs cold-eyed, so soon, so soon the dream over.
—Chen Yuhong, The Dial, 3 Feb. 2026
Yet, however eager the demonstrations of Denmark’s contribution and NATO’s collective goodwill may be, a more cold-eyed rationale may lie beneath their surface.
—Lisa Abend, Time, 18 Jan. 2026
The patriarch would like the ladies and Coleman to join him forthwith in Mexico; the letter’s bearer – a cold-eyed brute named Amos Turlow – will serve as guide.
—Erin Douglass, Christian Science Monitor, 26 Nov. 2025
These were acts of opportunism by a cold-eyed pragmatist.
—James Verini, The New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2025
ABC News, 6 June 2026
The setting, which changes from a blank Brutalism to a trailer-park-home installation suggesting one of Arnold’s cold-eyed dioramas, creates its own theatrical coup.
—Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 3 June 2026
In this sense, though Trump is impulsive and narcissistic while Sacks is cold-eyed and logical, they are well matched.
—George Packer, The Atlantic, 4 May 2026
Played by a Colman Domingo who is done up to look the most wax figurine of them all in a shellacking of makeup, prosthetics, and colored contacts, Joe is always either giving an avaricious open-mouthed leer or a cold-eyed glare.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 23 Apr. 2026
Cats and dogs cold-eyed, so soon, so soon the dream over.
—Chen Yuhong, The Dial, 3 Feb. 2026
Yet, however eager the demonstrations of Denmark’s contribution and NATO’s collective goodwill may be, a more cold-eyed rationale may lie beneath their surface.
—Lisa Abend, Time, 18 Jan. 2026
The patriarch would like the ladies and Coleman to join him forthwith in Mexico; the letter’s bearer – a cold-eyed brute named Amos Turlow – will serve as guide.
—Erin Douglass, Christian Science Monitor, 26 Nov. 2025
These were acts of opportunism by a cold-eyed pragmatist.
—James Verini, The New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cold-eyed
Adjective
-
Olise has purposefully cultivated a kind of detached non-persona.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
10 June 2026
-
Three children who were playing hide-and-seek spotted a cat floating on the surface of the water in the garden of an unoccupied semi-detached home.—
Moná Thomas,
PEOPLE,
8 June 2026
Adjective
-
Levine’s missive comes amid an icy relationship with Hosseini, which has soured since the collapse of former University of Michigan President Santa Ono’s candidacy for the UF presidency.—
Garrett Shanley,
Miami Herald,
18 June 2026
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Earth-impacting shrapnel from those primordial upheavals may have helped seed our planet with the precursors for life, delivering water and organic compounds from the dark, icy depths of the outer solar system.—
Lee Billings,
Scientific American,
18 June 2026
Adjective
-
There was another cigar somewhere in his not-too-distant future.—
Barry Svrluga,
New York Times,
17 June 2026
-
With the intention of permanently moving the orbiter Discovery to California, the Air Force designed SLC-6 differently from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, most notably by stacking the vehicle directly on the pad rather than in a more distant assembly building.—
Robert Pearlman,
ArsTechnica,
17 June 2026
Adjective
-
The perk here is that the material holds up to cold weather by stretching and expanding without breaking, requiring fewer repairs and resource use.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
17 June 2026
-
But there are ways of assessing it with cold hard figures, most notably the FIFA world rankings, which began in the 1990s as a way to assess the strength of international teams.—
Thom Harris,
New York Times,
16 June 2026
Adjective
-
Make sure the oven is completely cool before cleaning.—
Olivia McIntosh,
Martha Stewart,
13 June 2026
-
Nothing plays up dark mocha or cool raven hair like warm cinnamon balayage.—
Kaitlyn Yarborough,
Southern Living,
13 June 2026
Adjective
-
The production had no money, no stars and was going to shoot in a frigid Canadian forest.—
Seth Abramovitch,
HollywoodReporter,
17 June 2026
-
Chicago is a great pick for a city break, even during its famously frigid winters.—
Skye Sherman,
Travel + Leisure,
11 June 2026
Adjective
-
Monochrome Fit Summer weather can be unpredictable, with chilly mornings and blistering hot afternoons.—
Destinee Scott,
Travel + Leisure,
18 June 2026
-
Lopez has stepped out in Paris twice wearing a similar go-to uniform, including a breezy, lightweight outer layer that is ideal for chilly summer nights or rainy afternoons.—
Rachel Trujillo,
PEOPLE,
18 June 2026
Adjective
-
However, the brittle plastic breaks easily and is less durable than other trays.—
BestReviews,
Chicago Tribune,
17 June 2026
-
Another option is to treat the recent analysis as technical confirmation that the current system is brittle and inequitable, and use that to argue for a deeper change.—
David Sathuluri,
Mercury News,
16 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cold-eyed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cold-eyed. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
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