milk-shake

Definition

1. Noun:
   • A "milk-shake" is a cold beverage made by blending milk with ice cream, flavorings (such as chocolate, vanilla, or fruit), and sometimes other ingredients, typically served in a tall glass.
   • It can also refer to a similar drink made with milk alone, without ice cream, often mixed with a flavored syrup or powder.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • She ordered a chocolate milk-shake from the diner. (A cold, creamy drink made with milk and chocolate ice cream.)
  • The café serves a strawberry milk-shake topped with whipped cream. (A sweet beverage blended with milk and strawberries.)

Advanced Usage

• "to make a milk-shake": to prepare the drink by blending ingredients.

  • He learned to make a milk-shake using a blender and fresh fruit. (He prepared the beverage from scratch.)

• "milk-shake machine": a specialized appliance used in diners to mix milk-shakes.

  • The old-fashioned milk-shake machine whirred as it mixed the drink. (The device blended the ingredients into a thick consistency.)

Variants and Related Words

• Shake (n): a colloquial shortening of "milk-shake."

  • I'll have a vanilla shake, please. (A vanilla-flavored milk-shake.)

• Milk-shake (adj): describing something related to or resembling a milk-shake.

  • The milk-shake texture of the smoothie was creamy. (The smoothie had a similar creamy consistency.)

Synonyms

• Frappé: a thick, blended drink often made with ice cream, similar to a milk-shake (especially in New England usage).
• Smoothie: a blended drink made with fruit, yogurt, or milk, though typically without ice cream.

Related Idioms

• No idioms directly involving "milk-shake" are common in standard English. However, the term appears in informal contexts, such as:
  • "All the milk-shakes in the world won't fix that problem." (A figurative expression meaning that pleasant distractions cannot solve a serious issue.)

Additional Notes

• The word "milk-shake" can be spelled as two words ("milk shake") or hyphenated ("milk-shake"), with the hyphenated form being less common but accepted. The drink is distinct from a "smoothie" due to the inclusion of ice cream.