Meaning & use
frothed
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“frothed” is a form of “froth”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbtransitive or intransitive
Past tense and past participle of froth: to produce or form a layer of small bubbles, or to whip a liquid until it has bubbles.
Grammar: With an object when someone makes bubbles: she frothed the milk. Without one when bubbles appear on their own: the soda frothed.
Patterns
- froth something
- froth up
The barista frothed the milk until it was thick and creamy.
The river frothed white as it crashed over the rocks.
The cleaning mixture frothed up as soon as I added the vinegar.
verbintransitivefigurative
Past tense of froth in the sense of speaking or acting in a very angry or excited way, as if foaming at the mouth.
Grammar: No object; usually followed by at the mouth or with rage.
Patterns
- froth at the mouth
- froth with rage
He frothed with rage when he saw the damage to his car.
The commentator frothed at the mouth over the referee's decision.
She frothed about the new parking rules for the whole meeting.
Word forms
| base form | froth |
|---|---|
| third person singular | froths |
| -ing form | frothing |
Common combinations
- frothed milk
- I like my coffee topped with frothed milk.
- frothed up
- The shampoo frothed up in the hot water.
- frothed with rage
- The coach frothed with rage after the late goal.
- frothed at the mouth
- The old dog frothed at the mouth after the long chase, and the vet checked him.
Synonyms and how they differ
- foamed
- Foamed is very close for liquids, but frothed is the more usual word for whipped milk and cream.
- bubbled
- Bubbled describes separate bubbles rising, while frothed describes a mass of tiny bubbles forming a layer.
- whipped
- Whipped focuses on the beating action and is used for cream and eggs, whereas frothed stresses the bubbly result.
- fizzed
- Fizzed refers to gas escaping with a hissing sound, which frothed does not necessarily include.
Word family
Commonly confused: frothed or forthed?
frothed vs forthed
This is not a word. People sometimes mix up froth with forth, which means forward, as in back and forth.
Practice
The barista ____ the milk before pouring it onto the espresso.
Choose one answer.
Frothed means whipped into a bubbly layer, which is what happens to milk for a latte. The other options look similar but have unrelated meanings.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “frothed”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.