hot
having or giving off heat; having a high temperature: a hot fire;hot coffee.
having or causing a sensation of great bodily heat; attended with or producing such a sensation: He was hot with fever.
creating a burning sensation, as on the skin or in the throat: This ointment is hot, so apply it sparingly.
sharply peppery or pungent: Is this mustard hot?
having or showing intense or violent feeling; ardent; fervent; vehement; excited: a hot temper.
Informal. having a strong enthusiasm; eager: a hot baseball fan.
Slang.
sexually aroused; lustful.
sexy; attractive.
violent, furious, or intense: the hottest battle of the war.
strong or fresh, as a scent or trail.
absolutely new; fresh: a dozen new mystery stories hot from the press.
requiring immediate delivery or correspondence; demanding priority: The hot freight must be delivered by 10:00 a.m. tomorrow, or we'll lose the contract.
Slang. skillful in a reckless or daring way: a hot pilot.
following very closely; close: to be hot on the trail of a thief.
(of colors) extremely intense: hot pink.
Informal. popular and commercially successful; in demand; marketable: The Beatles were a hot group in the 1960s.
Slang. extremely lucky, good, or favorable: A poker player has to have a hot hand to win the pot.
Slang. (in sports and games) playing well or winningly; scoring effectively: a hot pitcher.
Slang. funny; absurd: That's a hot one!
Games. close to the object or answer that is being sought.
Informal. extremely exciting or interesting; sensational or scandalous: a hot news story.
Jazz.
(of music) emotionally intense, propulsive, and marked by aggressive attack and warm, full tone.
(of a musician) skilled in playing hot jazz.
Informal. (of a vehicle) capable of attaining extremely high speeds: a hot new jet plane.
Slang.
stolen recently or otherwise illegal and dangerous to possess: a hot diamond necklace.
wanted by the police.
Informal. in the mood to perform exceedingly well, or rapidly, as during a burst of creative work: Finish writing that story while you're still hot.
actively conducting an electric current or containing a high voltage: a hot wire.
of, relating to, or noting radioactivity.
Metalworking. noting any process involving plastic deformation of a metal at a temperature high enough to permit recrystallization due to the strain: hot working.
in a hot manner; hotly.
while hot: Garnish the potatoes with parsley and serve hot.
Metalworking. at a temperature high enough to permit recrystallization: The wire was drawn hot.
Chiefly British Informal. to heat; warm (usually followed by up).
the hots, Slang. intense sexual desire or attraction.
Idioms about hot
get hot, Slang. (in sports and games) to become very effective or successful; score or win repeatedly or easily.
hot and bothered, Informal. excited, aroused, or flustered: This mistake isn't worth getting hot and bothered about.: Also all hot and bothered.
hot and heavy, Informal. in an intense, vehement, or passionate manner: They argued hot and heavy for 20 minutes.
hot under the collar. collar (def. 23).
make it hot for, Informal. to make something unpleasant for; cause trouble for: Ever since their argument the principal has been making it hot for the new teacher.
Origin of hot
1Other words for hot
Opposites for hot
Other words from hot
- hotly, adverb
- hotness, noun
- o·ver·hot, adjective
- o·ver·hot·ly, adverb
- ul·tra·hot, adjective
- un·hot, adjective
Words Nearby hot
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use hot in a sentence
In almost every day in September so far, Brazil has had twice the number of hot spots as the US, according to the Greenpeace Global Fire Dashboard, which identifies fire activity using NASA satellite data.
What wildfires in Brazil, Siberia, and the US West have in common | Lili Pike | September 17, 2020 | VoxWhether your cord is made from nylon or polyester, both plastics will burn once they are hot enough.
This essential survival tool can save your life 10 different ways | By Tim MacWelch/Outdoor Life | September 15, 2020 | Popular-ScienceIf you can’t bear to sip a piping hot mug of dark roast on a scorching day, we understand.
They are all joined by legions of other hot startups, like Panoply, Incorta, and Yellowbrick.
Their interest suggested a growing investor-grade nervousness about swiftly mounting environmental risk in the hottest real estate markets in the country.
Climate Change Will Force a New American Migration | by Abrahm Lustgarten, photography by Meridith Kohut | September 15, 2020 | ProPublica
Gay marriage was the hot-button fight on the left and right.
Everybody is trapped in an elevator together and tempers run a little hot.
‘Archer’ Creator Adam Reed Spills Season 6 Secrets, From Surreal Plotlines to Life Post-ISIS | Marlow Stern | January 8, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTEven the hot Jewish women I mentioned above did something a bit more “intellectual” than pageantry: acting.
Why Was Bess Myerson the First and Last Jewish Miss America? | Emily Shire | January 7, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTThere was deep brown flesh, and bronze flesh, and pallid white flesh, and flesh turned red from the hot sun.
Powerful Congressman Writes About ‘Fleshy Breasts’ | Asawin Suebsaeng | January 7, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTMany Jewish women have been accepted as conventional, mainstream hot.
Why Was Bess Myerson the First and Last Jewish Miss America? | Emily Shire | January 7, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTIn the drawing-room things went on much as they always do in country drawing-rooms in the hot weather.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3) | Charles James Wills“You appear to feel it so,” rejoined Mr. Pickwick, smiling at the clerk, who was literally red-hot.
The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, v. 2(of 2) | Charles DickensNearly half the regiment ran to secure their picketed horses, armed themselves in hot haste, and galloped to the gaol.
The Red Year | Louis TracyNews came that the rebels were plundering the British quarters, and the infantry went there in hot haste.
The Red Year | Louis TracyFrom Canada on the north, to Texas on the south, the hot winds had laid the land seemingly bare.
The Homesteader | Oscar Micheaux
British Dictionary definitions for hot
/ (hɒt) /
having a relatively high temperature
having a temperature higher than desirable
causing or having a sensation of bodily heat
causing a burning sensation on the tongue: hot mustard; a hot curry
expressing or feeling intense emotion, such as embarrassment, anger, or lust
intense or vehement: a hot argument
recent; fresh; new: a hot trial; hot from the press
ball games (of a ball) thrown or struck hard, and so difficult to respond to
much favoured or approved: a hot tip; a hot favourite
informal having a dangerously high level of radioactivity: a hot laboratory
slang (of goods or money) stolen, smuggled, or otherwise illegally obtained
slang (of people) being sought by the police
informal sexually attractive
(of a colour) intense; striking: hot pink
close or following closely: hot on the scent
informal at a dangerously high electric potential: a hot terminal
physics having an energy level higher than that of the ground state: a hot atom
slang impressive or good of its kind (esp in the phrase not so hot)
jazz slang arousing great excitement or enthusiasm by inspired improvisation, strong rhythms, etc
informal dangerous or unpleasant (esp in the phrase make it hot for someone)
(in various searching or guessing games) very near the answer or object to be found
metallurgy (of a process) at a sufficiently high temperature for metal to be in a soft workable state
Australian and NZ informal (of a price, charge, etc) excessive
give it hot or give it to someone hot to punish or thrash someone
hot on informal
very severe: the police are hot on drunk drivers
particularly skilled at or knowledgeable about: he's hot on vintage cars
hot under the collar informal aroused with anger, annoyance, etc
in hot water informal in trouble, esp with those in authority
in a hot manner; hotly
Origin of hot
1Derived forms of hot
- hotly, adverb
- hotness, noun
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
Other Idioms and Phrases with hot
In addition to the idioms beginning with hot
- hot air
- hot and bothered
- hot and heavy
- hot as blazes
- hot dog
- hot line
- hot number
- hot off the press
- hot on
- hot potato
- hot rod
- hot seat, in the
- hot stuff
- hot to trot
- hot under the collar
- hot water
also see:
- blow hot and cold
- like a cat on hot bricks
- like hot cakes
- make it hot for
- piping hot
- strike while the iron's hot
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
Browse