# "Ice cold water": an oxymoron? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 11, 2014, 8:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-cold-water-an-oxymoron/685856 "2014-04-11T08:29:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Richard\_North](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@Richard\_North](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_North)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-cold-water-an-oxymoron/685856/41 "2014-04-29T12:59:25Z")
> [@Spoons](#): > > I’m currently in Las Vegas. It is hot here; certainly (to me, who has just come through a long, cold Canadian winter) hotter than I expected. > > Anyway. While I was out walking today, in the hot sunshine, there was a man selling “ice cold water.” And I got to wondering what “ice cold water” was. > > “Ice water” is easy enough: it is liquid water formed by melting ice. “Cold water” is similarly easy; it is liquid water at something less than ambient temperature. > > But “ice cold water”? Wouldn’t that be just … ice? > > (This is looking for opinions, but is also a mundane and pointless question. I will leave it to the mods to move to IMHO as they wish.) I’ve always wondered about that too. In reality, there’s no such thing as ice cold water. Ice cold water can’t be water. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-cold-water-an-oxymoron/685856/42 "2014-04-29T13:52:05Z")
> [@Richard\_North](#): > > I’ve always wondered about that too. In reality, there’s no such thing as ice cold water. Ice cold water can’t be water. Maybe, one of these days, when you have a few hours of spare time and your lips aren’t too tired, you could try reading some of the OTHER posts in this thread. ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-cold-water-an-oxymoron/685856/43 "2014-04-29T15:22:29Z")
Anyone want some water warm ice? ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-cold-water-an-oxymoron/685856/44 "2014-04-29T16:14:05Z")
It’s not an oxymoron, it’s an example of hyperbole. ---
**Author:** ![Bootis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e8c25b/32.png) [@Bootis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bootis)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-cold-water-an-oxymoron/685856/45 "2014-04-29T16:26:11Z")
> [@AHunter3](#): > > It’s not an oxymoron, it’s an example of hyperbole. That was my thought. “Icy hot water” would be more of an oxymoron. Water and ice aren’t contradicting terms, since ice is a form of water, not the opposite of it ---
**Author:** ![Find\_Friends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@Find\_Friends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Find_Friends)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-cold-water-an-oxymoron/685856/46 "2014-04-29T16:32:22Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > In Las Vegas it gets so hot (if you think it’s bad now, wait until summer) that even the ice is liquid. So they call that “ice cold water”. Whatever is considered cool in Vegas, stays cool in Vegas! 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-cold-water-an-oxymoron/685856/47 "2014-04-29T16:36:55Z")
Why is it hot as hell _and_ cold as hell? Make up your minds! And what’s up with airplane food? ---
**Author:** ![robsawatsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@robsawatsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robsawatsky)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-cold-water-an-oxymoron/685856/48 "2014-04-29T18:40:48Z")
> [@marshmallow](#): > > Why is it hot as hell _and_ cold as hell? Make up your minds! And what’s up with airplane food? And if it such a terrible place why is there always a hell-of-a-lot-a stuff. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-cold-water-an-oxymoron/685856/49 "2014-04-29T20:13:40Z")
> [@AHunter3](#): > > It’s not an oxymoron, it’s an example of hyperbole. Or, better yet, a _[pleonasm](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pleonasm)_… ---
**Author:** ![jharvey963](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/54ee81/32.png) [@jharvey963](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jharvey963)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2014, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-cold-water-an-oxymoron/685856/50 "2014-04-30T21:36:18Z")
Ah, come on. You expect English to be LOGICAL? 🙂 Ice cold water is an expression, pure and simple, just like “lose your head”, “put the word out”, etc. J. ---
**Author:** ![Detroit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/45deac/32.png) [@Detroit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Detroit)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-cold-water-an-oxymoron/685856/51 "2014-05-01T18:22:32Z")
> [@robsawatsky](#): > > And if it such a terrible place why is there always a hell-of-a-lot-a stuff. All of a sudden, my father’s voice popped into my head: “They need ice water, and you know where.” Never knew what he meant by the statement but I presume he meant hell. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-cold-water-an-oxymoron/685856.md?page=2)