heat wave
Americannoun
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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.
-
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.
Now sweating her way through a record-breaking heat wave, Kloc is ready to admit that she was wrong.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 26, 2026
During a May heat wave, France’s public-health agency reported a spike in heat-related emergency room visits and hospitalizations.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 25, 2026
The heat wave stems from “a really strong ridge of high pressure,” Ciliberti said.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 21, 2026
The researchers closely examined an intense Alaska heat wave that lasted from June 23-July 10, 2019.
From Science Daily • Jun. 12, 2026
“I...just meant there’s a heat wave outside. You definitely need an iced coffee.”
From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon
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.
