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cold turkey

[kohld tur-kee] / ˈkoʊld ˈtɜr ki /
NOUN
complete and sudden withdrawal from an addictive substance
Synonyms


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

It was after tallying my December spending that I finally deleted them cold turkey in January.

From Salon • Mar. 3, 2026

“It was terrifying. You can’t just go cold turkey on these things,” he said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 26, 2025

According to medical literature and former patients, some programs, including CHOP, wean children off medications—including narcotics, antidepressants, steroids, and seizure medications—or encourage them to stop cold turkey.

From Slate • Sep. 15, 2025

"We went cold turkey really, but we managed it. We've just got used to living without Russian pipeline gas," explains Dr Jack Sharples, senior research fellow at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies.

From BBC • Feb. 25, 2024

In the evening, as the sky and most of the land turned red, they sat together eating cold turkey drumsticks and wearing green-shaded glasses to watch the lava burn.

From "The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge" by M.T. Anderson and Eugene Yelchin




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