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in the heat of

in the heat of

22 4.9
During a very emotional moment when people act without thinking
  • idiom
translation icon : en el calor de
  • Some people might call them out in the heat of the moment and in the midst of the frustration of the narcissistic relationship.
  • in the heat of the moment
  • in the heat of battle

Like in the height, in the, in the heat of combat.

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Examples

  • But my point was that stupid decisions can appear in the heat of the moment to be good ones.

    Blog text (19)
  • In the heat of battle, there's very little time to think.

  • There was... an accident... in the heat of the moment

  • It's all about being able to control yourself in the heat of the moment.

    Blog text (20)
  • That was in the heat of an argument.

  • Sometimes, in the heat of the moment, I can feel my temper building.

    Blog text (31)
  • If the boundaries are not clear to the participants, they will be exceeded in the heat of competition.

    Academic text (1997)
  • So it was in the heat of anger that the Spartans voted.

  • Bram was the cool one, quieter, more likely to bide his time than to act in the heat of the moment.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • It's easy to say things you don't mean in the heat of an argument.

Synonyms

in the heat of the moment
vsin the heat of
  • Informal
7 6.1

When you feel strong feelings and act without thinking

describes the same timing but does not imply impulsive action
at fever pitch
vsin the heat of
1 5.6

A time when excitement or tension is very high

is about happening during intense emotional situations rather than expressing only intensity

Antonyms

110 1.0

In a calm, steady way without showing anger or nervousness

56 3.9

In a clear, reasonable way based on facts

Surface Forms

Morphology

in + the + heat + of

The phrase’s meaning — occurring during a period of high intensity or strong emotion — is directly derivable from the constituents: 'in' (within) + 'heat' (used metaphorically for intensity) + 'of' (linking to the time or moment). This heat-as-intensity metaphor and the prepositional construction are common cross-linguistically and follow normal English composition, so a B1 learner who knows the words will readily infer the meaning.

Etymology

In the heat of comes from the image of being in a very hot place, like on a battlefield or in a heated argument, where heat stands for strong feeling and people act fast without thinking. So in the heat of now means 'during a very intense or emotional moment'.