Spanish · Emotions & Descriptions
"Cold" in Spanish: frío/a
frío/a
Cold is frío for masculine and fría for feminine. Say el agua está fría or el viento frío. For how you feel, use tengo frío. For weather, hace frío is the usual line.
About a drink
Este jugo está muy frío.Speak with an AI partner · 7 days free
How to pronounce frío/a
Say it
FREE-oh / FREE-ah
/ˈfɾio/
FREE-oh / FREE-ah. Stress FREE. The í in frío carries the stress mark.
"Cold" in Spanish: quick reference
| Spanish | English | When to use |
|---|---|---|
| frío / fría | cold Temperature of things; agree with gender. | Temperature of things; agree with gender. |
| hace frío | it's cold (weather) Default outdoor weather phrase. | Default outdoor weather phrase. |
| tengo frío | I'm cold How your body feels. | How your body feels. |
| helado / helada | icy; freezing Stronger than frío. | Stronger than frío. |
How to use frío/a in real life
- 1About a drink
Este jugo está muy frío.
This juice is very cold.
Frío agrees with jugo (masculine).
- 2Weather chat
Hace frío en la mañana.
It is cold in the morning.
Hace frío is weather; frío is the core word.
- 3Feeling chilly
Tengo frío. ¿Hay un suéter?
I'm cold. Is there a sweater?
Tengo frío for body feeling, not estoy frío.
Mistakes English speakers make with frío/a
Incorrect: Estoy frío. (meaning I feel cold)
Correct: Tengo frío.
For body feeling say tengo frío. Estoy frío is not the usual pattern.
Incorrect: El agua está frío.
Correct: El agua está fría.
Agua takes feminine agreement: está fría, not está frío. Keep frío for masculine nouns.
Good to know
Tengo frío and hace frío are everyday weather talk. Asking for cold water as agua fría is normal; frío names the idea. Estoy frío for "I feel cold" sounds off to many speakers.
Try it in a ChatPal conversation
Morning walk in cool weather
ChatPal
Hoy hace mucho frío afuera.
It's very cold outside today.
You
Sí. El viento está frío.
Yes. The wind is cold.
ChatPal
¿Quieres un café bien caliente?
Do you want a nice hot coffee?
You
Sí, por favor. Tengo frío en las manos.
Yes, please. My hands are cold.
This is a sample. In ChatPal you have this conversation out loud and get feedback on what you say.
Practice this conversation in ChatPal"Cold" in other languages
FAQ
Common questions about "Cold" in Spanish
Frío or fría?
Frío with masculine nouns, fría with feminine. El día frío, la noche fría.
Tengo frío or estoy frío?
Say tengo frío for how you feel. Estoy frío is uncommon for that meaning.
How do you say cold weather?
Hace frío. That is the standard weather line with frío.
How do you pronounce frío?
FREE-oh with stress on FREE. Write the accent on í.
Learn a word, then use it out loud
- Step 1: See it in context
- Step 2: Say it out loud
- Step 3: Get feedback
- Step 4: Use it in real scenarios
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