Freeze vs. Frieze

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Grammarist

Freeze means the process by which a liquid turns into a solid, due to a drop in temperature. Freeze may also mean to become blocked with ice, to lose sensation due to a drop in temperature, to become hypothermic due to a drop in temperature. Freeze may also be used as a verb to mean fixed in place. Related forms are freezes, froze, frozen, freezing, freezer, freezable. The word freeze comes from the Old English word freosan, meaning turn to ice.

Frieze is an architectural term which refers to a wide band of decoration, usually near the ceiling. A frieze may be sculpted, painted or both. The word frieze arises in the 1560s from the Middle French word frise, meaning a ruff, which in turn is derived from the Medieval Latin word frisium meaning embroidered border.

Examples

The National Weather Service issued a freeze warning for parts of Ventura County beginning early Tuesday, including the Ojai Valley where overnight temperatures were expected to get down into the 20s. (The Ventura County Star)

Col. Brad Rice, superintendent of the patrol, said the freeze was mostly the result of disagreements about rules and accounting practices that now have been cleared up. (The Lincoln Journal Star)

But as ubiquitous as frozen turkeys may be, their origin story isn’t one that’s particularly well known. (The Atlantic Journal)

Turn the crumbs and butter around, press them into a pan and stow the crust in the freezer to firm, while you move on to the top deck. (The National Post)

Part of a frieze which originally ran around the internal wall of the 14th century infirmary at Rievaulx Abbey. (The Malton & Pickering Mercury)

A huge frieze boasts already restored reliefs and some sculptures in human shapes, although with wings on their backs. (The Yucatan Times)

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