hot seat
Americannoun
-
a highly uncomfortable or embarrassing situation.
I'm in the hot seat because of the contract I lost.
noun
-
informal a precarious, difficult, or dangerous position
-
a slang term for electric chair
Etymology
Origin of hot seat
First recorded in 1915–20
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.
As he heads out of the hot seat, he would like to see more support for those who follow in his, and their, wake.
From BBC • Jun. 4, 2026
Cue the violins, because after Jerome Powell’s swan song Fed rate meeting, it’s his final two weeks in the hot seat.
From Barron's • May 4, 2026
Redick, who signed an extension in September that will keep him under contract until 2030, is not on the hot seat, not yet.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026
Few are like Cliffwater, which until recently was an investor darling but now finds itself in the hot seat.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026
"She gets a promotion 'cause she was in the hot seat when the imagery came through?"
From "The Martian" by Andy Weir
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.
