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to heat

to heat

138 5.9
To cause strong feelings or excitement
  • verb
  • /hiːt/
translation icon : avivar
  • To what epoch the Kneales' coffee table belongs is a topic of heated debate these days.
  • a heated debate
  • a heated discussion
  • a heated argument

Examples

  • Well, I actually need you to get your butt back here because things are really heating up with this whole wine madness.

  • Things were heating up in Jungle Village.

  • Things are just beginning to heat up between the couple inside the car.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • Things are really heating up at the castle tonight.

  • Looks like things are heating up quite nicely.

  • The claims have given rise to controversy, sometimes heated, but existing empirical evidence does not provide a resolution.

    Academic text (1999)
  • Yellowstone was at the center of a heated debate over various proposals to manage the park's grizzlies.

    Academic text (2012)
  • Okay, let's just, okay, no, we don't need to get heated here.

  • Writing under pseudonyms, they maintain anonymity while discussing the most heated issues of the day without fear of retribution.

    Academic text (2011)
  • The debate about climate change really heated up as more people began to voice their strong opinions.

Synonyms

to wake
vsto heat
279 4.8

To make someone feel strong emotions or remember something

focuses on exciting passion or strong emotion rather than awareness
to fire up
vsto heat
  • Informal
70 4.1

Make people feel excited and ready to act

is general excitement or passion without implied action
to fire
vsto heat
62 4.8

To cause strong feeling or excitement in someone

is broader, meaning excite feelings or passions in groups or individuals
to stir up
vsto heat
48 4.8

To make people feel strong emotions like anger or fear

is broader and may be unintentional arousal without causing trouble
to ignite
vsto heat
47 4.4

To cause strong feelings in someone

is the neutral general term for arousing strong feelings
to inflame
vsto heat
31 5.8

To make people's feelings stronger, especially anger or hate

is general arousal including positive or neutral passions, not just anger
to fan
vsto heat
7 5.9

To make a feeling like anger or hate grow stronger

is broader arousal of passions and excitement, not focused on hatred
to ignite passion
vsto heat
1 5.0

Make someone feel very excited and interested in something

is broader, applying to any strong feeling not only enthusiasm
to enkindle
vsto heat
  • Archaic
1 9.2

To make someone feel a strong emotion

is general strong arousal, not necessarily gentle or poetic
6.0

To make someone feel strong excitement or deep emotion

is general arousal of passions, not limited to personal excitement

Antonyms

962 1.0

Make a person or animal less upset

33 3.4

Cause something to become less sharp, strong or bright

Idioms

During a very emotional moment when people act without thinking

To notice warmth on your skin from the sun or a fire

7 6.1

When you feel strong feelings and act without thinking

4 8.1

Unable to handle pressure or strong criticism

Phrasal Verbs

84 1.0

To make something hot or warm

57 3.4

To become more intense or make a situation more intense

Make a situation more urgent to force someone to act

7 9.9

To carry a gun on your body for protection

To make a room or car warm by switching on a machine that warms it

to catch heat
  • Informal
1 8.3

To get criticism or blame from others for something you did

Make the oven reach the right temperature before you put food in it

To heat a building by sending steam through pipes or radiators

Compounds

30 3.2

A period of very hot weather that lasts several days

19 6.7

A race result when two or more people finish exactly together

heat shield
  • Specialized
10 4.6

A layer or device that protects a spacecraft from very hot air when it returns to the atmosphere

5 8.0

A strong beam of energy that makes things hot from far away

5 3.6

A lamp that gives off heat to warm people, animals, or food

heat exhaustion
  • Specialized
5 4.0

A condition when you feel dizzy, sick, and weak after being very hot and not drinking enough water

heat-seeking missile
  • Specialized
4 5.0

A weapon that follows the heat from a plane's engine to hit it

heat pump
  • Specialized
4 4.2

A machine that moves heat from outside air or the ground into a building to warm it

heat energy
  • Specialized
3 3.2

The movement of warmth from a hotter thing to a cooler thing

heat content
  • Specialized
2 6.7

The total energy in a system, including energy from pressure and volume

heat exchanger
  • Specialized
2 4.1

A machine that moves heat between two liquids or gases without mixing them

latent heat
  • Specialized
1 5.0

Heat taken in or given out when a material changes state, such as melting and boiling

1 3.5

A skin irritation with small red bumps that appears when it is hot and humid

heat engine
  • Specialized
1 5.0

A machine that uses heat to make movement or power

heat sink
  • Specialized
1 4.5

A metal part that takes heat away from electronic parts so they do not get too hot

specific heat
  • Specialized
1 5.7

Amount of heat needed to raise one gram of a material by one degree Celsius

heat dissipation
  • Specialized
1 4.4

The release of heat from a machine or device to prevent overheating

heat prostration
  • Specialized
1 6.8

A condition of dizziness, feeling sick, and weakness from losing fluids in hot weather, also called heat exhaustion

1 7.0

A skin rash with small itchy red spots in hot, wet weather

steam heat
  • Specialized
1 3.2

A system that heats a building by sending steam to radiators

1 7.8

Very high temperature that makes metal glow white

1 2.6

Heat from burning natural gas to warm a building

heat of sublimation
  • Specialized
1 8.2

The amount of heat needed to change a solid directly into a gas without becoming liquid

Bright flashes in the far sky at night with no nearby thunder, often on hot evenings

heat unit
  • Specialized
1 5.3

A measure of heat energy like a calorie or BTU

total heat
  • Specialized
1 7.0

The amount of energy inside a system plus its pressure times its volume

blood heat
  • Archaic
5.5

The normal temperature of the human body, about 37°C or 98.6°F

6.7

The idea that temperature goes up when particles move faster

heat of fusion
  • Specialized
6.3

The amount of heat needed to change one kilogram of solid to liquid at its melting point without changing temperature

6.5

Amount of energy given off for each kilogram when a liquid becomes solid, for example when water freezes

heat of solution
  • Specialized
6.8

Heat released or taken in when a substance dissolves in a large amount of liquid like water

7.3

Amount of energy absorbed or released when a substance changes state like ice melting

heat of vaporization
  • Specialized
7.2

Amount of heat needed to turn a liquid into steam without raising its temperature

heat flash
  • Specialized
7.6

A very short, strong burst of heat from an explosion that can burn things nearby

heat hyperpyrexia
  • Specialized
9.9

A dangerous rise in body temperature after being in very hot conditions

heat of condensation
  • Specialized
7.2

The amount of heat given off when a gas becomes a liquid

heat of dissociation
  • Specialized
8.6

Energy needed to break molecules into smaller parts in a hot gas or liquid

heat of formation
  • Specialized
6.7

The heat released or absorbed per mole when a compound forms from its elements under standard conditions

heat-absorbing
  • Specialized
6.1

A material or reaction that takes in heat from its surroundings

heat-releasing
  • Specialized
5.2

A chemical reaction or substance that gives off heat

heat barrier
  • Specialized
8.6

A speed limit where a plane gets so hot that its parts can be damaged

heat capacity ratio
  • Specialized
7.0

The number showing how much more heat a material needs at constant pressure than at constant volume

red heat
  • Specialized
6.1

A very high temperature when metal glows red

How Heated

to incite
  • NSFW
72 7.7
to inflame
31 5.8
to heat
138 5.9
to stir
131 3.7

Surface Forms

heat infinitive
heated past
heated past participle
heating present participle
heats third person singular

Etymology

Heat as a verb meaning to stir up strong feelings comes from the old English hāt meaning 'hot', so to heat a crowd is to make them 'hot' with emotion.