fridge
/frɪdʒ
/noun chiefly British
A refrigerator: she put the carton of milk back in the fridge...
- Storage facilities like fridges and deep freezers are examined to ensure they comply with health regulations.
- Freezers, fridges, microwaves and cookers are checked and tested before being delivered at a low cost to clients.
- Asbestos and 20 fridges and freezers were among the abandoned rubbish, which took council workers nearly a day to clear.
Origin
1920s: abbreviation, probably influenced by the proprietary name Frigidaire.
frigid from Late Middle English:
This comes from Latin adjective frigidus ‘cold’, from the noun frigus ‘cold’. The word is also behind refrigerate (Late Middle English). The refrigerator for preserving food appears in the mid 19th century, and was shortened to fridge in the 1920s.