hot

[ hot ]

/ hɒt /

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See synonyms for: hot / hotter / hottest / hotly on Thesaurus.com

adjective, hot·ter, hot·test.

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.
dangerous.

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.

adverb

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.

verb (used with or without object), hot·ted, hot·ting.

Chiefly British Informal. to heat; warm (usually followed by up).

noun

the hots, Slang. intense sexual desire or attraction.

OTHER WORDS FOR hot

1 heated; fiery, burning, scorching; scalding, boiling; torrid, sultry.

4 biting, piquant, sharp, spicy.

5 fervid; fiery, passionate, intense, excitable, impetuous; angry, furious, irate, violent.

See synonyms for hot on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR hot

1 cold.

See antonyms for hot on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

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

before 1000; 1920–25 for def. 23; Middle English ho(o)t,Old English hāt; cognate with Dutch heet,Old Norse heitr,Swedish het,Danish hed,German heiss

OTHER WORDS FROM hot

hotly, adverbhotness, nouno·ver·hot, adjectiveo·ver·hot·ly, adverb

ul·tra·hot, adjectiveun·hot, adjective

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

How to use hot in a sentence

Here’s a hot opportunity — each exhibiting startup gets five minutes to pitch live to Session attendees.
48 hours left to save on tickets to TC Sessions: Space 2020|Alexandra Ames|November 12, 2020|TechCrunch
Regular washing in hot water is also necessary, says Raina MacIntyre, a mask researcher at the University of New South Wales in Sydney.
Coronavirus cases are skyrocketing. Here’s what it will take to gain control|Tina Hesman Saey|November 11, 2020|Science News
Cam Newton, Rivera’s former starter with Carolina, is 31 and has struggled since a hot start with New England.
Washington football notes: Run-stop struggles, and the future at quarterback|Sam Fortier|November 10, 2020|Washington Post
With both the hot-melt and liquid fillers, cracks shouldn’t be deeper than ½ inch.
Why is it so expensive to patch an asphalt driveway?|Jeanne Huber|November 9, 2020|Washington Post

Not far away, just beyond the boundary of the red-zone hot spot, an older woman in a mask walked her dog.
New York’s block-by-block lockdowns are curbing covid-19. But residents aren’t pleased.|Ben Guarino|November 8, 2020|Washington Post
The cook gave me a bottle of gooseberry wine; which she said might do as well if hotted up.
Johnny Ludlow. First Series|Mrs. Henry Wood
Slice o' plum pudding hotted up a purpose, only no beer for to encourage wice in youth.
When Ghost Meets Ghost|William Frend De Morgan
We had our supper of sandwiches and tatie-cake and hotted-up tea.
A Poor Man's House|Stephen Sydney Reynolds

British Dictionary definitions for hot

hot

/ (hɒt) /

adjective hotter or hottest

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 tonguehot mustard; a hot curry

expressing or feeling intense emotion, such as embarrassment, anger, or lust

intense or vehementa hot argument

recent; fresh; newa hot trial; hot from the press

ball games (of a ball) thrown or struck hard, and so difficult to respond to

much favoured or approveda hot tip; a hot favourite

informal having a dangerously high level of radioactivitya 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; strikinghot pink

close or following closelyhot on the scent

informal at a dangerously high electric potentiala hot terminal

physics having an energy level higher than that of the ground statea 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 severethe police are hot on drunk drivers
particularly skilled at or knowledgeable abouthe'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

adverb

in a hot manner; hotly

Derived forms of hot

hotly, adverbhotness, noun

Word Origin for hot

Old English hāt; related to Old High German heiz, Old Norse heitr, Gothic heito fever

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

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