Phrase guide

throw cold water on

verb · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /θɹəʊ kəʊld ˈwɔːtə(ɹ)ɒn/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /θɹəʊ kɔʊld ˈwɔːtə(ɹ)ɒn/
  • General-American: /θɹoʊ koʊld ˈwɔtɚ ɑn/
  • General-American: /θɹoʊ koʊld ˈwɔɾɚ ɑn/
  • Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

verb

Meaning 1

(of an achievement, emotion, idea, suggestion, etc.) To belittle or dismiss; to cast doubt upon; to debunk.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic, transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: pour cold water on

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

be discouraging or negative about

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: pour cold water on

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: discourage

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

10 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Cantonese: 潑冷水 /泼冷水 (put3 laang5 seoi2) — to belittle or dismiss
  • Chinese Mandarin: 潑冷水 /泼冷水 (pōlěngshuǐ) — to belittle or dismiss
  • Chinese: 攙凊水 /搀凊水 (cang2 cing4 zui3) — to belittle or dismiss
  • Chinese: 灑凊水 /洒凊水 (sua5 cing4 zui3) — to belittle or dismiss
  • Finnish: kaataa kylmää vettä niskaan — to belittle or dismiss
  • Finnish: tyrmätä — to belittle or dismiss
  • Galician: tirar auga fría sobre — to belittle or dismiss
  • Korean: 찬물을 끼얹다 (chanmur-eul kkieonda) — to belittle or dismiss
  • Polish: mieć negatywne podejście — to belittle or dismiss
  • Portuguese: jogar um balde de água fria — to belittle or dismiss