in the cold light of day

(When) considered calmly and dispassionately, without the charge of emotions felt at the time something happened. I was so angry at the time that I could barely talk to her, but, in the cold light of day, I realize that she made some very valid points. I think we're getting too hung up on the issues the other company is introducing. Let's all go home and look at this again tomorrow in the cold light of day. Come on, this really isn't a big deal when seen in the cold light of day.

See also: cold, light, of

in the cold light of day

Dispassionately, unemotionally, especially at a later time. For example, They had a terrible fight about the mix-up, but in the cold light of day they realized they were both at fault . This expression transfers the illumination of daylight to rational understanding and uses cold to emphasize the lack of passion.

See also: cold, light, of

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

in the cold light of day

If you think about something in the cold light of day, you think about it some time after it happened and in a calmer or more sensible way than was possible at the time it happened. Then in the cold light of day, she would switch on the computer again and sort it all out. Most of the ideas seemed slightly less brilliant in the cold light of day. Note: Words such as dawn and morning are sometimes used instead of day. In the cold light of dawn we could see that the team lacked motivation.

See also: cold, light, of

Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012

in the cold light of day

when you have had time to consider a situation objectively.

See also: cold, light, of

in the ˌcold light of ˈday

when you have had time to think calmly about something; in the morning when things are clearer: In the cold light of day, the plans they’d made didn’t seem such a good idea.

See also: cold, light, of

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