heat pump

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noun

a device that uses a compressible refrigerant to transfer heat from one body, as the ground, air, or water, to another body, as a building, with the process being reversible.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

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Origin of heat pump

First recorded in 1890–95

Words nearby heat pump

heat of solution, heat of sublimation, heat of vaporization, heatproof, heat prostration, heat pump, heat rash, heat reservoir, heat-seal, heat-seeking, heat shield

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use heat pump in a sentence

Some experts have hailed heat pump technology as a more efficient option.
It’s time to rethink air conditioning|Rebecca Leber|August 26, 2021|Vox
While it can’t be used as a whole-home generator if the home is small, it’s designed for providing backup power for a few select household appliances like refrigerators and heat pumps.
Best electric generator: The top picks to keep your fridge and phone running|Dan Bergstein|August 25, 2021|Popular-Science
The same goes for things like heating and cooking if regulations require more homes and businesses to shift to electric stoves, heat pumps, and other cleaner technologies.
The $3.5 trillion budget bill could transform the US power sector—and slash climate pollution|James Temple|August 23, 2021|MIT Technology Review
GMP ended up upgrading that 150-year-old building with new LED lights and electric heat pumps, and installing the community’s first and only streetlight at a nearby intersection.
This Vermont Utility Is Revolutionizing Its Power Grid to Fight Climate Change. Will the Rest of the Country Follow Suit?|Alejandro de la Garza/Panton, Vt.|July 26, 2021|Time

I’ve paid to replace natural-gas heating in low-income housing projects with electric heat pumps—where I pay the capital cost premium and they get the benefit of the lower monthly bill.
Bill Gates: Rich nations should shift entirely to synthetic beef|James Temple|February 15, 2021|MIT Technology Review

British Dictionary definitions for heat pump

heat pump

noun

a device, as used in a refrigerator, for extracting heat from a source and delivering it elsewhere at a much higher temperature

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