Spanish · Nature, Animals & Weather

"It's cold" in Spanish: hace frío

hace frío

Say it: AH-seh FREE-ohphrase/ˈase ˈfɾio/

It's cold (weather) is hace frío. Use hacer for cold weather. Tengo frío means I feel cold. Do not say estoy frío for how you feel.

Morning walk

Hace frío. Ponte un abrigo.
It's cold. Put on a coat.
Practice Spanish out loud

Speak with an AI partner · 7 days free

How to pronounce hace frío

Say it

AH-seh FREE-oh

/ˈase ˈfɾio/

AH-seh FREE-oh. Stress FREE. Accent on í in frío. Say hace frío as two clear words.

"It's cold" in Spanish: quick reference

SpanishEnglish
hace fríoit's cold

Default outdoor weather.

hace mucho fríoit's very cold

Strong cold.

tengo fríoI feel cold

Body feeling.

qué fríohow cold!

Quick complaint.

How to use hace frío in real life

  1. 1Morning walk

    Hace frío. Ponte un abrigo.

    It's cold. Put on a coat.

    Hace frío + advice.

  2. 2Mountain trip

    Arriba hace frío todo el día.

    Up there it's cold all day.

    Hace frío with place.

  3. 3Night text

    Quédate. Hace frío afuera.

    Stay. It's cold outside.

    Hace frío afuera.

Mistakes English speakers make with hace frío

Incorrect: Es frío hoy.

Correct: Hace frío hoy.

Weather uses hace frío, not es frío.

Incorrect: Estoy frío. (meaning I feel cold)

Correct: Tengo frío. / Hace frío.

For body feeling say tengo frío. For weather say hace frío.

Good to know

Highland mornings start with hace frío even in sunny countries. Markets sell café and churros; people say hace frío before putting on a thin jacket at dawn.

Try it in a ChatPal conversation

Waiting for a bus at dawn

  1. ChatPal

    Hoy hace frío temprano.

    It's cold early today.

  2. You

    . Hace frío en la parada.

    Yes. It's cold at the stop.

  3. ChatPal

    ¿Quieres café mientras esperamos?

    Want coffee while we wait?

  4. You

    , por favor. Gracias.

    Yes, please. Thanks.

This is a sample. In ChatPal you have this conversation out loud and get feedback on what you say.

Practice this conversation in ChatPal

"It's cold" in other languages

FAQ

Common questions about "It's cold" in Spanish

Why hace and not es?

Weather temperature uses hacer: hace frío.

Hace frío or tengo frío?

Hace frío is weather. Tengo frío is how you feel.

Can I say estoy frío?

Not for feeling cold. Prefer tengo frío or hace frío.

How do you pronounce hace frío?

AH-seh FREE-oh.

Learn a word, then use it out loud

  1. Step 1: See it in context
  2. Step 2: Say it out loud
  3. Step 3: Get feedback
  4. Step 4: Use it in real scenarios

Keep reading

Ready to say it out loud?

ChatPal is a voice-first app for practicing real conversations in Spanish. Try real scenarios and get personalized feedback on your speaking.

Start with 7 days free.