chillier; chilliest
1
: noticeably cold : chilling
a chilly day
2
: unpleasantly affected by cold
chilly spectators
3
: lacking warmth of feeling : unfriendly
a chilly reception
4
: tending to arouse fear or apprehension
chilly suspicions
Examples of chilly in a Sentence
It's a little chilly outside.
You must be chilly without a coat on.
They gave him a chilly reception.
Recent Examples on the Web
At West Ham, Nuno has aligned himself with a club where the problems run so much deeper than merely trying to prevent the chilly fingers of relegation from closing round their neck.
—
Daniel Taylor, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2026
Sledding For families who enjoy making the most of the chillier weather, including snow, there are few better budget-friendly pastimes than sledding.
—Mia Taylor, Parents, 7 Jan. 2026
The idea for Fabrecreate, as the company was later dubbed, started to take form one chilly night in 2023 when Gulati was watching the news in the school mess hall.
—Jasmin Malik Chua, Sourcing Journal, 7 Jan. 2026
With the price of beef going up and up, this could be considered a special occasion dish for a chilly winter night.
—Gretchen McKay, Boston Herald, 7 Jan. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Chilly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chilly. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
Kids Definition
chilly
adjective
chillier; chilliest
1
: noticeably cold
2
: unpleasantly affected by cold
3
: not friendly
a chilly response
chilliness
noun
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