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cold turkey. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
cold turkey, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
cold turkey in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
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English
Etymology
Various explanations; see Cold turkey § Etymology on Wikipedia.
Pronunciation
Noun
cold turkey (uncountable)
- Sudden and complete withdrawal from a dependent substance, especially a drug.
- The physiological effects of such a withdrawal.
- (US military slang, World War I– World War II) Something exposed as a target due to surmountable defense.[1]
- Synonyms: cold meat, easy target, easy pickings
Translations
sudden and complete withdrawal
Adverb
cold turkey (not comparable)
- (idiomatic) Not gradually; all at once. Refers especially to quitting a habit by force of will rather than by a gradual reduction.
It is difficult, but possible to quit smoking cold turkey.
2012 April 4, Sam Anderson, “Just One More Game ...”, in The New York Times Magazine:I knew that, if I had daily access to video games, I would spend literally every day playing them, forever. So I cut myself off, more or less cold turkey, and as a result I was more or less happy and productive.
2023 October 5, Rich Pelley, “Joan Baez: ‘I talk to trees to get answers. They give it to you cold turkey’”, in The Guardian, UK:Joan Baez:: ‘I talk to trees to get answers. They give it to you cold turkey’.
Translations
References
- ^ Lighter, Jonathan (1972) “The Slang of the American Expeditionary Forces in Europe, 1917-1919: An Historical Glossary”, in American Speech, volume 47, number 1/2, page 35