heat wave
Americannoun
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heat waves
plural
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a period of abnormally hot and usually humid weather; heat event.
I moved to the coast up north because summer back home has become one long, unbearable heat wave.
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an air mass of high temperature covering an extended area and moving relatively slowly.
Another heat wave is expected to form across the South and into the Northeast by week’s end.
noun
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a continuous spell of abnormally hot weather
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(not in technical use) an extensive slow-moving air mass at a relatively high temperature
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of heat wave
First recorded in 1875–80
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.
A wildfire that destroys energy generation facilities during a significant heat wave, for example, could cause enough capacity loss to generate the use of these tools, said Ackemann.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
At sites in extreme climates, or during a heat wave, chill airflow or water evaporation is still necessary.
From Barron's ● Sep. 7, 2026
The summer also doubled the previous record number of days above 34 degrees Celsius, or 93 Fahrenheit—14 versus seven in 1976, the year of a notorious heat wave.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
A family of black bears are safe after being rescued from a large water tank in La Verne amid a dangerous heat wave in Los Angeles, according to L.A.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 30, 2026
At the end of June, a heat wave of a hundred degrees moves in and doesn’t budge.
From "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
