cold drink
A soft drink — soda, not coffee or water.
Also called soft drink, coke.
Updated September 21, 2026
cold drink pronunciation
/KOHLD drink/
Meaning
In parts of the South, especially around New Orleans and east Texas, cold drink is the everyday word for a carbonated soft drink. Same territory as folks who say coke for any soda. You ask for a cold drink at the store or the gas station and they know you mean something fizzy out of the cooler.
How folks use it
- “Y'all want a cold drink with that barbecue?”
- “Grab me a cold drink out of the ice chest.”
Origin and etymology
Descriptive name that stuck as a category word: chilled bottled soda sold at Southern stores and stands. Dialect maps put cold drink strongest in a south-central pocket (New Orleans, Dallas, Houston), while much of the wider South leans on coke or soft drink.
Frequently asked questions
Does cold drink mean any cold beverage?
In this regional use, no. It means soda. Iced tea or water gets named separately.