a thaw in sth
用于比喻，表示紧张或敌对关系开始改善。
After years of conflict, there was finally a thaw in their relationship.
经过多年的冲突，他们之间的关系终于出现了缓和。
化冻期；融雪期；回暖天气；（关系等的）缓和；（政策等的）放宽；活跃起来；变得友好；（态度等的）缓和；(冻土、冰、雪等冰冻之物)因升温而逐渐融化或变软；由冻结转为流体或半流体的过程。；(很冷的人或物)逐渐暖和起来的过程。
The process by which something frozen melts or something very cold becomes warmer.
(冻土、冰、雪等冰冻之物)因升温而逐渐融化或变软；由冻结转为流体或半流体的过程。
A gradual melting or softening of something frozen (such as earth, ice, or snow) when the temperature rises; the transformation of something frozen into a fluid or semifluid.
(很冷的人或物)逐渐暖和起来的过程。
A gradual warming up of someone or something that is very cold.
(不活跃的事物)变为活跃的行为；也指(无感情的事物)产生感情的行为。
Of something inactive: an act of becoming active; also, of something unfeeling: an act of developing feelings.
(拘谨或不友好的人)变得友好或温和的行为。
Of a person who is reserved or unfriendly: an act of becoming friendly or gentle.
(国家或地区)放宽限制的时期；也指国家间敌意或紧张减少、友好或理解增加的时期。
A period of relaxation of restrictions in a country or state; also, a period of increased friendliness or understanding, or of reduced hostility or tension in relations, between states.
天气暖和到足以使冰雪等融化的时期。
A period of weather warm enough to melt ice, snow, etc.
The spring thaw turned the narrow mountain paths into muddy streams.
春天的解冻使狭窄的山间小路变成了泥泞的溪流。
用法提示：此处的 thaw 是名词，指冰雪在春季因气温升高而融化的过程。
After the thaw, the ice on the lake began to break up.
解冻之后，湖面上的冰开始碎裂。
用法提示：thaw 作名词，表示天气回暖导致冰雪消融的时期或现象。
Farmers wait for the thaw before they start preparing the soil.
农民们等到解冻后才开始整理土地。
用法提示：这里的 thaw 是名词，指土地解冻的阶段。
用于比喻，表示紧张或敌对关系开始改善。
After years of conflict, there was finally a thaw in their relationship.
经过多年的冲突，他们之间的关系终于出现了缓和。
指实际的融化过程，of 后接被融化的物体。
The thaw of the frozen ground caused extensive flooding.
冻土的融化造成了严重的洪水。
thaw 特指冰雪或冷冻物因温度升高而逐渐融化；melt 范围更广，可用于任何固体受热变液态的场合。
defrost 强调除去霜或冰，常用于冰箱、汽车玻璃或冷冻食品；用在自然冰雪融化的天气语境中不自然。
softening 只强调变软，不一定完全融化成液体；用于冻土或食物从坚硬变松软时可与 thaw 互换，但更局限于这类场景。
grammar · medium
易错句子The spring brought thaw to the frozen river.
正确表达The spring brought a thaw to the frozen river.
thaw 在这里是可数名词，表示“一次解冻”，单数可数名词前需要不定冠词，因此应说 a thaw。
grammar · medium
易错句子There was a thaw of relations between the two countries.
正确表达There was a thaw in relations between the two countries.
表示“关系缓和”时，thaw 后常用介词 in 来说明缓和的方面，即 a thaw in relations，而不是 of。
对应thaw的“融化、解冻（期）”义。freeze亦为名词，指严寒期或冻结。二者反义关系直接；但thaw表“关系缓和”时，反义词多用chill。
对应thaw的“关系缓和”义。chill指冷淡、疏远，与thaw的缓和相对。freeze虽也可在比喻义中指关系冻结（a freeze in relations），但chill更典型。
thaw 指冰雪、冻土因气温回升而自然解冻的过程或时期，常作名词；melting 指固体受热变为液体的物理变化，不限于自然冰雪，范围更广。
thaw 表示自然升温带来的冰雪或冻土解冻；defrosting 表示人为清除冰箱/冷冻室内的霜或使冷冻食品解冻，不用于自然天气。
thaw 指冰雪受热自然解冻的过程或时期；snowmelt 指雪融化后产生的水，是结果，不是过程。
春天的解冻期
The spring thaw turned the roads into mud.
春天的解冻期使道路变成了泥泞。
逐渐解冻
Scientists are monitoring the gradual thaw of the glaciers.
科学家们正在监测冰川的逐渐解冻。
解冻期来临
The thaw sets in when temperatures stay above freezing.
当气温持续在零度以上时，解冻期就来临了。
关系缓和
After years of tension, there was a thaw in relations between the two countries.
多年紧张之后，两国之间的关系出现了缓和。
冰是融化的直接对象，温度升高时冰逐渐变成水。
雪在气温回升时会融化，与thaw所描述的过程密切相关。
春季气温上升，常伴随冰雪消融，是thaw常见的季节背景。
温暖的气温是导致解冻或融化的主要原因。
温度升高是触发thaw这一自然过程的关键因素。
关系缓和；关系解冻
The leader's visit signaled a thaw in relations between the neighboring countries.
这位领导人的访问标志着邻国之间的关系有所缓和。
政治解冻；政治关系缓和
The new policy initiated a political thaw that allowed more open debate.
新政策开启了政治解冻，允许更开放的讨论。
我不知道自己能不能挺过这场解冻。
In Disney's Frozen, the snowman Olaf sings about summer and jokes that he may not survive the thaw.
在迪士尼《冰雪奇缘》中，雪人奥拉夫唱到夏天，并打趣说自己可能挺不过解冻。
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY, WORDNET.