Brass monkey weather

Meaning

Extremely cold weather. The full expression is ‘Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey’.

Examples

The weatherman says minus 10 degrees and strong winds for tomorrow. That’s brass monkey weather.

Where did it originate?

The UK and USA in the early 20th century.

Where is it used?

Worldwide, mostly among people in their 20/40s, as a slang expression.

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About the Author

Gary Martin

Writer and researcher on the origins of phrases and the creator of the Phrase Finder website. Over the past 26 years more than 700 million of his pages have been downloaded by readers. He is one of the most popular and trusted sources of information on phrases and idioms.

Brass monkey weather