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Glite Dictionary
Frigid Zone

Frigid Zone

6.9
A very cold area around the North or South Pole
  • noun
  • /ˈfrɪdʒɪd zoʊn/
  • Archaic
translation icon : zona frígida
  • The animals in the Frigid Zone have adapted to survive in extremely cold temperatures.

Examples

  • Scientists study the unique ecosystems found in the Frigid Zone near the North Pole.

  • In what Clarke called the "Frigid Zone," these three intrepid travelers entered a strange and alien environment, awesome in its remote and silent majesty.

    Academic text (1996)

  • The Frigid Zone is home to polar bears and other creatures that thrive in icy conditions.

Synonyms

polar region
vsFrigid Zone
7 3.2

An area around the North or South Pole that is very cold and icy

is slightly less extreme in coldness than that concept
polar zone
vsFrigid Zone
4.3

An extremely cold area around the North or South Pole with ice and snow

is less extreme in coldness than that concept

How Cold

Frigid Zone
  • Archaic
6.9
subpolar
7.4
subtropical
7 4.6

Surface Forms

Frigid Zone singular
Frigid Zones plural

Morphology

frigid + zone

The meaning is directly and transparently derived from combining 'frigid' (very cold) with 'zone' (a region), so it clearly denotes a region characterized by extreme cold such as polar areas. This compositional pattern is common across languages and follows standard noun modification, so a B1 learner who knows both words would readily infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Frigid Zone comes from a simple picture: frigid means 'very cold' and zone means an area. It refers to the regions 'around the North or South Pole' that are very cold, so today the phrase means those cold polar areas.