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
Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 4 June 2025
Animation Station Vampire Hunter D This stone-cold, ’80s goth anime classic is rarely available to stream legally, and the dual Hidive-Shudder collaborative release is a canny way to present it.
—Savannah Salazar, Vulture, 2 June 2025
During the viral TikTok video, Stassi didn't budge at all (apart from dishing out a stone-cold side eye).
—Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 May 2025
Meanwhile, DiVincenzo is a stone-cold killer from beyond the arc (39.7% from three this year) and a fierce competitor on the defensive end (75th percentile in DEF EPM).
—Mat Issa, Forbes.com, 20 May 2025
That means Engram probably enters camp this summer as the only stone-cold lock to make the roster.
—Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 14 May 2025
Asked about the pending decision, Silva first pivoted to the stone-cold geopolitical realities.
—Justin Worland, Time, 9 May 2025
Things like: stupid, dummy, low-life dummy, sleazebag, sick, sad, stone-cold crazy.
—Kimi Robinson, USA Today, 12 Apr. 2025
With veteran composure, freshman Sarah Strong out to lead UConn women to a 12th national title
Even after the UConn women secured a Final Four berth with a win over USC, freshman Sarah Strong never broke her stone-cold exterior.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 3 Apr. 2025
Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 22 Feb. 2023
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Adjective
That might be the hottest streak any rock label has ever had, cranking out stone-cold classics by Guided By Voices (Alien Lanes), Pavement (Wowee Zowee), Helium (The Dirt of Luck), Yo La Tengo (Electr-O-Pura), and Chavez (Gone Glimmering), all within a few weeks.
—Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 4 June 2025
Animation Station Vampire Hunter D This stone-cold, ’80s goth anime classic is rarely available to stream legally, and the dual Hidive-Shudder collaborative release is a canny way to present it.
—Savannah Salazar, Vulture, 2 June 2025
During the viral TikTok video, Stassi didn't budge at all (apart from dishing out a stone-cold side eye).
—Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 May 2025
Meanwhile, DiVincenzo is a stone-cold killer from beyond the arc (39.7% from three this year) and a fierce competitor on the defensive end (75th percentile in DEF EPM).
—Mat Issa, Forbes.com, 20 May 2025
That means Engram probably enters camp this summer as the only stone-cold lock to make the roster.
—Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 14 May 2025
Asked about the pending decision, Silva first pivoted to the stone-cold geopolitical realities.
—Justin Worland, Time, 9 May 2025
Things like: stupid, dummy, low-life dummy, sleazebag, sick, sad, stone-cold crazy.
—Kimi Robinson, USA Today, 12 Apr. 2025
With veteran composure, freshman Sarah Strong out to lead UConn women to a 12th national title
Even after the UConn women secured a Final Four berth with a win over USC, freshman Sarah Strong never broke her stone-cold exterior.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 3 Apr. 2025
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
Cite this Entry
“Stone-cold.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stone-cold. Accessed 11 Jun. 2025.
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