cold shower


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a cold shower

1. An unexpectedly cold reaction from someone or something. Well, that bad review in the paper was certainly a cold shower amid the excitement of starring in my first play. When I retired, all I got was a farewell card signed by a couple people from my department. I didn't expect a lot of pomp or anything, but that was quite a cold shower! The fact that we only got a few people at our open house was a bit of a cold shower—we had high hopes of selling for top dollar.
2. A distraction that allows one to suppress sexual urges or feelings. Often used in the phrase "take a cold shower." You're losing your mind over this girl. Go take a cold shower before you do something stupid. That movie was steamy! I think I need to go home and take a cold shower. After seeing her in that skimpy bikini, I could really use a cold shower.
See also: cold, shower
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

cold shower

A surprisingly chilly reception, reaction, or response, as in The small voter turnout was a cold shower to the League of Women Voters. The allusion in this term is to the unexpected and not always pleasant effect of an ice-cold shower. [Second half of 1900s]
See also: cold, shower
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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