Meaning & use
hot and cold
Last updated
Meanings
phrasefixed phraseinformal
often changing between friendly and unfriendly feelings toward someone
Grammar: Used after linking verbs like 'be' or 'go': She's hot and cold with me.
Patterns
- be hot and cold with someone
- go hot and cold on something
He's been hot and cold with me all week — one day he's friendly, the next he ignores me.
Their relationship is hot and cold; they argue and make up constantly.
She goes hot and cold on the idea of moving abroad.
phrasefixed phrase
literally having a high temperature or a low temperature
Grammar: Used to describe physical objects or weather that are sometimes hot and sometimes cold.
Patterns
- feel hot and cold
- run hot and cold
The water in the shower runs hot and cold, so it's hard to get a comfortable temperature.
After the fever, she felt hot and cold at the same time.
Common combinations
- be hot and cold with someone
- He's hot and cold with her, so she never knows where she stands.
- go hot and cold
- She went hot and cold about the job offer.
- blow hot and cold
- The boss blows hot and cold on the new policy.
- hot and cold running water
- The cabin has hot and cold running water.
Synonyms and how they differ
- changeable
- Used for people or things that change often, but 'hot and cold' specifically refers to alternating between warm and cool feelings toward someone.
- fickle
- Stronger and more disapproving; it suggests someone who is not loyal, while 'hot and cold' is milder and can describe temporary moods.
Opposites
Commonly confused: hot and cold or hot-and-cold?
hot and cold vs hot-and-cold
The hyphenated form is usually only used before a noun, as in 'a hot-and-cold relationship'. The unhyphenated phrase is more common after a verb.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'hot and cold' correctly?
Choose one answer.
The correct preposition after 'hot and cold' when describing feelings toward someone is 'with'. The other prepositions do not fit this meaning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “hot and cold”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.