chilling effect
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.67 in modern English
28
Scrabble Score
14
Letters
4
Syllables
9
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A discouraging effect, especially on certain forms of officially legal speech.
noun
Synonym of wind chill.
Example Sentences
- "A “chilling effect,” a phrase invoked with numbing regularity these days, is the shibboleth that civil libertarians have brandished for a couple of decades against actions that could deter the press from exercising its constitutional freedom."
- "Performance artists whose lawsuit led to yesterday's Supreme Court decision on indecency in the arts expressed disappointment at the ruling, saying they feared it would have a chilling effect on creativity and freedom of expression."
- "Should the decision of Judge Kaplan be upheld and a subpoena be served for Mr. Berlinger’s footage, Mr. Moore said, “The chilling effect of this is, someone like me, if something like this is upheld, the next whistleblower at the next corporation is going to think twice about showing me some documents if that information has to be turned over to the corporation that they’re working for.”"
- "“It really starts with doctors, because overturning Roe will have a severe chilling effect,” said Lindsay Lewis, co-author of a report by the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers that studied the potential criminal effects of ending Roe, and a board member of the same organization."