thaw

See also: Thaw

English

Alternative forms

• thow

Etymology

From Middle English thowen, thawen, from Old English þāwian, from Proto-West Germanic *þauwjan, from Proto-Germanic *þawjaną, from Proto-Indo-European *teh₂- (“to melt”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /θɔː/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /θɔ/
• (cot–caught merger) IPA^(key): /θɑ/

  • Audio (US):

    (file)

• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /θoː/
• Rhymes: -ɔː

Verb

thaw (third-person singular simple present thaws, present participle thawing, simple past and past participle thawed)

1. (intransitive) To gradually melt, dissolve, or become fluid; to soften from frozen

   the ice thaws

2. (intransitive) To become sufficiently warm to melt ice and snow — said in reference to the weather, and used impersonally.

   It's beginning to thaw.

3. (intransitive, figuratively) To grow gentle or genial.

   Her anger has thawed.

4. (transitive) To gradually cause frozen things (such as earth, snow, ice) to melt, soften, or dissolve.
   • c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene i], page 167:

     Mor. Miſlike me not for my complexion, / The ſhadowed liuerie of the burniſht ſunne, / To whom I am a neighbour,and neere bred. / Bring me the faireſt creature North-ward borne, / Where Phœbus fire ſcarce thawes the yſicles, / And let vs make inciſion for your loue, / To proue whoſe blood is reddeſt,his or mine.

   • 1700, [John] Dryden, “Palamon and Arcite: Or, The Knight’s Tale. In Three Books.”, in Fables Ancient and Modern; […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:

     The frame of burnish'd steel, that cast a glare / From far, and seemed to thaw the freezing air.

Derived terms

• freeze-thaw
• thaw out

 

Translations

to melt, dissolve, or become fluid

Arabic: ذَابَ (ḏāba) Belarusian: растава́ць impf (rastavácʹ), раста́яць pf (rastájacʹ) Bulgarian: топя се (topja se), разтопявам се (raztopjavam se) Catalan: descongelar (ca) Chinese: Mandarin: 解凍／解冻 (zh) (jiědòng), 渐融 (jiànróng), 融化 (zh) (rónghuà) Czech: tát (cs) Danish: tø (da) Dutch: dooien (nl) Esperanto: fandiĝi, likviĝi, degeli (eo) Finnish: sulaa (fi) French: dégeler (fr), fondre (fr) Galician: derreter, delazar German: tauen (de), schmelzen (de) Greek: λιώνω (el) (lióno) Hebrew: הפשיר (hifshír) Hungarian: olvad (hu) Italian: fondersi (it), scongelarsi (it) Japanese: 溶ける (ja) (とける, tokeru) Korean: 녹다 (ko) (nokda) Latgalian: izalaist Latvian: izkust Lithuanian: ištirpti Maori: koero Marathi: विरघळणे (virghaḷṇe) Mongolian: please add this translation if you can Norman: dêgeler Norwegian: tine (no) Bokmål: tø (no), tine (no) Occitan: desgelar, destorrar, desglaçar, descongelar Polish: roztapiać się impf, roztopić się (pl) pf, topnieć (pl) impf, stopnieć pf, tajać (pl) impf, odtajać pf Portuguese: descongelar (pt), derreter (pt) Romanian: decongela (ro), a se dezgheța (ro) Russian: та́ять (ru) impf (tájatʹ), раста́ять (ru) pf (rastájatʹ), отта́ивать (ru) impf (ottáivatʹ), отта́ять (ru) pf (ottájatʹ), раста́ивать (ru) impf (rastáivatʹ) Scottish Gaelic: leagh Serbo-Croatian: топити impf Slovene: stopiti se Spanish: descongelar (es), derretir (es) Swedish: töa (sv), smälta (sv) Thai: ละลาย (th) (lá-laai) Ukrainian: та́нути impf (tánuty), розтава́ти impf (roztaváty), розта́нути pf (roztánuty) Venetan: desleguarse (vec), desfantarse

to cause frozen things to melt, soften, or dissolve

Arabic: أَذَابَ (ʔaḏāba) Aromanian: dizgljets Bulgarian: топя (bg) (topja), разтопявам (bg) (raztopjavam) Czech: rozpustit (cs) Dutch: ontdooien (nl) Esperanto: fandi (eo) Finnish: sulattaa (fi) French: fondre (fr) Galician: derreter, delazar German: auftauen (de) Greek: αποψύχω (el) (apopsýcho), ξεπαγώνω (el) (xepagóno) Hebrew: הפשיר (hifshír) Hungarian: felolvaszt (hu), kiolvaszt (hu) Italian: fondere (it), scongelare (it) Japanese: 溶かす (ja) (とかす, tokasu) Marathi: विरघळणे (virghaḷṇe) Mongolian: please add this translation if you can Polish: rozmrażać (pl) impf, rozmrozić (pl) pf, topić (pl) impf, roztapiać impf, roztopić (pl) pf, Romanian: dezgheța (ro) Russian: раста́пливать (ru) impf (rastáplivatʹ), растопи́ть (ru) pf (rastopítʹ) Spanish: descongelar (es), derretir (es) Swedish: smälta (sv), tina (sv) Thai: ละลาย (th) (lá-laai)

to grow gentle

French: fondre (fr) German: entspannen (de)

Noun

thaw (plural thaws)

1. The melting of ice, snow, or other frozen or congealed matter; the transformation of ice or the like into the state of a fluid; liquefaction by heat of anything congealed by frost
2. a period of weather warm enough to melt that which is frozen
   • 1660, [John] Dryden, Astraea Redux:

     raging floods pursue their hasty thaw; / Our thaw was mild , the cold not chased away

3. (figuratively) A period of relaxation, of reduced reserve, tension, or hostility or of increased friendliness or understanding.

Derived terms

• silver thaw
• thaw-drop
• thaw wind

 

Translations

the melting of ice, snow or other congealed matter

Albanian: please add this translation if you can Arabic: please add this translation if you can Armenian: please add this translation if you can Aromanian: jigãrditsã Bulgarian: топене (bg) n (topene), разтопяване n (raztopjavane) Chinese: Mandarin: 解凍／解冻 (zh) (jiědòng), 融化 (zh) (rónghuà) Czech: tání (cs) n Dutch: dooi (nl) m Esperanto: fando sg Finnish: sulaminen (fi) French: dégel (fr), fusion (fr) Galician: dexelo m, delazo m Georgian: please add this translation if you can German: Schmelze (de) f Greek: ξεπάγωμα (el) n (xepágoma), απόψυξη (el) f (apópsyxi) Hebrew: הפשרה f (hafshará) Hindi: हिमद्रवण (himadravaṇ), हिमक्षरण (himakṣaraṇ), गलन (hi) (galan), पिघलाव (pighlāv), द्रवण (hi) (dravaṇ) Hungarian: olvadás (hu) Italian: disgelo (it) Japanese: 雪解け (ja) (ゆきどけ, yukidoke), 霜解け (しもどけ, shimodoke), 解氷 (ja) (かいひょう, kaihyō) Korean: please add this translation if you can Marathi: हिमद्रवण (himadravaṇ), हिमक्षरण (himakṣaraṇ), वितळणे (mr) (vitaḷṇe), वितळण (vitḷaṇ) Occitan: destorrada f, desgèl m Polish: odwilż (pl) f, tajanie n, roztop m Portuguese: degelo (pt) m Russian: та́яние (ru) n (tájanije) Scottish Gaelic: aiteamh m Spanish: deshelar (es), deshielo (es) m, descongelación (es) f, derretimiento (es) m Swedish: tö (sv), töväder (sv) Thai: please add this translation if you can Turkish: please add this translation if you can Yiddish: אַדליגע f (adlige)

warmer weather that melts ice and snow

Czech: obleva (cs) f Dutch: dooi (nl) m Esperanto: degelo Finnish: suoja (fi), suojasää (fi), suojailma French: dégel (fr) Galician: delazo m, dexelo m German: Tauwetter (de) n Icelandic: hláka (is) f, þíða f, bloti m Italian: disgelo (it) Lithuanian: atodrėkis Polish: ocieplenie (pl) n, odwilż (pl) f Russian: о́ттепель (ru) f (óttepelʹ) Swedish: tö (sv), töväder (sv) Ukrainian: відли́га f (vidlýha)

reduced tension or increased friendliness

Finnish: suojasää (fi) French: dégel (fr) m, réchauffement de l’atmosphère m German: Tauwetter (de) n

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

Dutch: (please verify) dooi (nl) Italian: (please verify) fusione (it) f, (please verify) scongelamento m

Derived terms

• dethaw
• unthaw

See also

• snowmelt

Anagrams

• HAWT, Wath, hawt, wath, what

Welsh

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /θau̯/

Verb

thaw

1. Aspirate mutation of taw.

Mutation

Welsh mutation
radical	soft	nasal	aspirate
taw	daw	nhaw	thaw
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.