idiom (phrasal) · informal
get cold feet
UK/ɡet kəʊld fiːt/US/ɡet koʊld fiːt/get COLD FEET
to become too nervous or scared to do something you had planned to do
Examples
“He was going to propose, but he got cold feet at the last minute.”
“Many people get cold feet before moving to a different country.”
“She almost signed the contract but got cold feet and asked for more time.”
Band 8 sentence
“Many applicants get cold feet when they realise how big the move will be, which is understandable.”
Collocations
- get cold feet before sth / about doing sth
- get cold feet at the last minute
Word family
Common mistakes
I had cold feet before the exam.→I got cold feet before the exam.
She was cold feet about moving abroad.→She got cold feet about moving abroad. / She had second thoughts about moving abroad.
Say it for a higher band
5be nervous→6have second thoughts→7+get cold feet
Synonyms
have second thoughts
chicken out
Easily confused
have second thoughts
“I had second thoughts about accepting the job offer.”
chicken out
“He chickened out of the bungee jump at the last moment.”
Related words
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In get …
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