Cool down or cooldown?
cool down is a verb meaning “To become cooler; to be reduced in temperature”; cooldown is a noun meaning “The rest period between sets or workout sessions, when cooling of body…”. Use cool down as a verb and cooldown as a noun. cool down is written as two words and cooldown as one word; they are used differently.
What is the difference between cool down and cooldown?
| cool down | cooldown | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | verb | noun |
| Meaning | To become cooler; to be reduced in temperature To become less agitated or excited | The rest period between sets or workout sessions, when cooling of body temperature may occur Any rest period between sessions of an activity or event |
| Example | You can drink the coffee when it's cooled down | I had to wait for the cooldown to finish before recasting the spell |
| Forms | none | cooldowns |
| Pronunciation | /kuːl ˈdaʊn/ | /ˈkuːldaʊn/ |
| In writing | not counted (the list counts single words) | about once in every 4 million words |
Sources: cool down and cooldown in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of cool down and cooldown
cool down
- 1
To become cooler; to be reduced in temperature
You can drink the coffee when it's cooled down
- 2
To become less agitated or excited
I'd love to go to Israel, but I'll have to wait until the violence cools down
- 3
To decrease in degree or intensity
- 4
To cause (something) to become cooler; to reduce the temperature of
We had to cool down the equipment with water before using it
- 5
To cause (someone) to become less agitated or excited
Dave was kicking and screaming, so I had to cool him down with some mellow music
cooldown
- 1
The rest period between sets or workout sessions, when cooling of body temperature may occur
- 2
Any rest period between sessions of an activity or event
- 3
The minimum length of time that the player needs to wait after using an ability or item before it can be used again
I had to wait for the cooldown to finish before recasting the spell
- 4
A particular ability with a powerful effect but long cooldown period, making it important to track when it was last used and when it can be used again
Don't waste your cooldown on weak enemies!
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, cool down or cooldown?
cool down is a phrase, which the list of single words does not count; cooldown about once in every 4 million words.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).