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central heating

American  

noun

  1. a system that supplies heat to an entire building from a single source through ducts or through pipes.


central heating British  

noun

  1. a system for heating the rooms of a building by means of radiators or air vents connected by pipes or ducts to a central source of heat

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of central heating

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Technology, though, has improved rapidly in this area and more modern facilities use a closed loop of water, similar to that in domestic central heating systems.

From BBC Sep. 15, 2026

I received a similar question recently from a reader who had employed a heating engineer to fix their central heating.

From MarketWatch Apr. 14, 2026

Pat Bedford, from Llanwenog in Ceredigion, where nearly 60% of people have oil central heating, said she does not qualify for the payment but she also cannot afford the oil price increase.

From BBC Mar. 31, 2026

Two years and £250,000 later, the building was fitted with central heating, a kitchen, four bedrooms, four bathrooms, four reception rooms and an extension.

From BBC Jan. 24, 2026

The official temperature is often much less relevant than the absence of central heating.

From "Double Helix" by James D. Watson

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