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
Fernando Ramirez, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Aug. 2025
Charles turned to a grinning Marina Mabrey with a stone-cold expression as their chests collided in celebration while more than 8,800 fans roared behind them.
—Emily Adams, Hartford Courant, 1 Aug. 2025
Elsewhere, outlaw country singer Alex Williams released Space Brain, a collection of hair metal songs reinvented as stone-cold country music.
—Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 30 July 2025
Jon Bernthal has appeared in several Marvel television series as the stone-cold vigilante known as the Punisher, even headlining his own series.
—Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 20 June 2025
In 1993, Nintendo put out a cartridge containing four stone-cold NES classics, beautified and upscaled for the beefier Super Nintendo.
—Luke Winkie, Vulture, 18 June 2025
Though the characters are stone-cold capitalists, the power couple are fan favorites — people have designed RAILROAD DADDY T-shirts in honor of George.
—Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 17 June 2025
Manager Craig Counsell has pushed all the right buttons, when he’s not getting ejected, and Hoyer’s stone-cold firing of David Ross is now a distant memory.
—Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 16 June 2025
Instead, a team that’s earned its reputation as stone-cold killers saw the other side Friday.
—Zak Keefer, New York Times, 14 June 2025
Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 22 Feb. 2023
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Adjective
Cascarino ran toward the bench with a stone-cold expression.
—Fernando Ramirez, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Aug. 2025
Charles turned to a grinning Marina Mabrey with a stone-cold expression as their chests collided in celebration while more than 8,800 fans roared behind them.
—Emily Adams, Hartford Courant, 1 Aug. 2025
Elsewhere, outlaw country singer Alex Williams released Space Brain, a collection of hair metal songs reinvented as stone-cold country music.
—Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 30 July 2025
Jon Bernthal has appeared in several Marvel television series as the stone-cold vigilante known as the Punisher, even headlining his own series.
—Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 20 June 2025
In 1993, Nintendo put out a cartridge containing four stone-cold NES classics, beautified and upscaled for the beefier Super Nintendo.
—Luke Winkie, Vulture, 18 June 2025
Though the characters are stone-cold capitalists, the power couple are fan favorites — people have designed RAILROAD DADDY T-shirts in honor of George.
—Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 17 June 2025
Manager Craig Counsell has pushed all the right buttons, when he’s not getting ejected, and Hoyer’s stone-cold firing of David Ross is now a distant memory.
—Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 16 June 2025
Instead, a team that’s earned its reputation as stone-cold killers saw the other side Friday.
—Zak Keefer, New York Times, 14 June 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 7 Aug. 2025.
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