Gradually warming something frozen so it becomes liquid or soft again, or becoming warmer in manner or attitude.
From Old English 'thawian,' of Germanic origin. Cognate with Old Norse 'theyja.' The word has been used since before 1000 AD for melting ice, metaphorically extended to emotions by the 16th century.
Climate scientists use 'thawing' as a shorthand for catastrophe—Arctic permafrost thawing releases methane that's been frozen for millennia, accelerating global warming. The innocent-sounding word describes one of Earth's most dangerous feedback loops.
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