hothead
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of hothead
Explanation
A hothead is someone who's suddenly and easily angered or agitated. It's usually a hothead who starts a riot or turns a peaceful protest violent. A friend who seems calm one minute and furious the next is a hothead — and if you've ever witnessed a "road rage" incident involving an unreasonably angry driver, you know how unpredictable a hothead can be. This useful noun has been around since the 17th century, influenced by the Old English equivalent, hatheort or "hot heart," and Elizabethan English's hot-brain.
Vocabulary lists containing hothead
My Brother Sam is Dead
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On the Come Up
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"Roberto Clemente: Pride of the Pittsburgh Pirates"
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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.
Recommended Work: Hothead Paisan is currently out of print, but the comic still resonates.
From Slate • Oct. 31, 2019
An article in The Daily Caller invokes his most recent film in order to criticize Cusack for being a "Hothead Whine Machine."
From Reuters • Sep. 1, 2010
Kids can choose from the flatulent Mr. Tooty, an air-headed Girly Girl or an ill-humored Hothead.
From Time Magazine Archive
But the man once crowned Senator Hothead did not blow.
From Time Magazine Archive
"My dear Hothead, they are big enough to look out for themselves."
From The Vision Splendid by Raine, William MacLeod
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.
