Cool down: lower temperature and less anger

The idea

Use cool down without an object for becoming cooler or less angry. To make something cooler, say cool down the soup / cool the soup down, but cool it down. The past is cooled; cold is an adjective.

Examples

• The kitchen cooled down after sunset.
• Mina cooled the soup down with a little cold water.
• Mina cooled down the soup with a little cold water.
• It is still too hot; let it cool down.
• Omar needed a few minutes to cool down after the argument.
• A short walk helped Lea cool down after the disagreement.

Watch out

Cooling down does not mean becoming freezing cold; it means losing heat. In an argument, it can mean losing anger. Telling someone Cool down! directly may sound dismissive, so consider the situation.

Try it yourself

1. Choose the correct option. The soup is too hot. Cool ___. (it down / down it)

   Show answer or example answer

   it down

   The pronoun it replaces the soup and goes between cool and down.

2. Choose the correct option. The kitchen ___ down after sunset yesterday. (cooled / cold)

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   cooled

   The past verb is cooled. Cold describes a temperature and cannot fill this verb position.

3. Omar was angry, but now he is calmer. Choose the expression for this change. After the argument, Omar ___. (cooled down / warmed up)

   Show answer or example answer

   cooled down

   The context says Omar becomes less angry: cooled down expresses that change.

Use it today

Write about a warm room losing heat and a person becoming calmer after an argument. Add one sentence where someone cools an object, using it between cool and down.