heap
Americannoun
-
a group of things placed, thrown, or lying one on another; pile.
a heap of stones.
- Synonyms:
- collection, accumulation, stack, mass
-
Informal. a great quantity or number; multitude.
a heap of people.
-
Slang. an automobile, especially a dilapidated one.
verb (used with object)
-
to gather, put, or cast in a heap; pile (often followed by up, on, together, etc.).
-
to accumulate or amass (often followed by up ortogether ).
to heap up riches.
-
to give, assign, or bestow in great quantity; load (often followed by on orupon ).
to heap blessings upon someone; to heap someone with work.
-
to load, supply, or fill abundantly.
to heap a plate with food.
verb (used without object)
idioms
noun
-
a collection of articles or mass of material gathered together in one place
-
informal a large number or quantity
-
slang to contend strenuously with an opposing sporting team
-
slang to try very hard
-
informal a place or thing that is very old, untidy, unreliable, etc
the car was a heap
adverb
verb
-
to collect or be collected into or as if into a heap or pile
to heap up wealth
-
(tr; often foll by with, on, or upon) to load or supply (with) abundantly
to heap with riches
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
heapsimple
-
heapssimple
-
have heapedperfect
-
has heapedperfect
-
am heapingprogressive
-
are heapingprogressive
-
is heapingprogressive
-
have been heapingperfect progressive
-
has been heapingperfect progressive
Past
-
heapedsimple
-
had heapedperfect
-
was heapingprogressive
-
were heapingprogressive
-
had been heapingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of heap
First recorded before 900; 1925–30 heap for def. 3; Middle English heep, Old English hēap; cognate with Dutch hoop, Old High German houf; akin to German Haufe
Explanation
A great big pile of something is a heap. Your sloppy brother might keep all of his clothes in a heap on his bedroom floor. A heap can be a literal mound of things — a heap of money in your piggy bank, or a heap of wet towels beside the pool — or it can be a figurative pile. For example, you might worry that if you're caught eating your roommate's pizza you'll be in a heap of trouble. Heap is also a verb, as when you heap compliments on your best friend. Since 1924 heap has also meant "junky old car."
Vocabulary lists containing heap
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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.
See Examples For:
The former hospital is a heap of rubble and the uranium miner glorified on a huge Soviet mosaic has lost half his face.
From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026
Spoon-feeding this critical bit of dialogue early in the film allows Barker to heap as much violence, trauma and tropes onto Nikki’s character as possible, under the guise of thematic callbacks.
From Salon ● Jun. 4, 2026
Images from the scene show a mangled heap of scaffolding and concrete splaying out onto the street, covered by green safety netting.
From BBC ● May 24, 2026
On May 4, 1945, at Gunskirchen, a Nazi prison camp in Austria, Edith was found by U.S. soldiers in a heap of people dead or dying.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026
Her ankle caught on a vine and sent her crashing to the ground in a heap.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
The run of defeats for India, coupled with two surprise losses to Ireland prior to this series, heaps pressure on Shreyas Iyer, who took over the India T20 captaincy in early June.
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
Serving up heaps of fatty cabeza and sizzling al pastor, it grew to nearly a dozen locations spanning from Long Beach to L.A. to the Antelope Valley, drawing praise from prominent food critics.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
The buildings collapsed into heaps, exposing thick layers of styrofoam that had been used as mortar between slabs of concrete.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026
His wife Jean died in 2009 at the age of 62, decades after she was exposed to asbestos when walking past heaps of the material resembling "the white cliffs of Dover" as a child.
From BBC ● Mar. 11, 2026
Jake tapped one of the book heaps cluttering the work desk.
From "The Smartest Kid in the Universe" by Chris Grabenstein
Greenspan basked in the credit for the booms that unfolded under his watch, and chafed at the blame heaped on him for the financial collapse that unfolded shortly after he left office.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026
On Saturday, Ukraine's foreign minister Andriy Sybiga heaped further criticism on the Russian leader.
From Barron's ● Jun. 6, 2026
But he heaped praise on referee Chris Kavanagh for his decision.
From BBC ● May 10, 2026
The singer also heaped praise on Billie Eilish whose single What Was I Made For?, from the soundtrack of the 2023 Barbie film, is one of the tracks covered by Weller.
From BBC ● Apr. 24, 2026
And its deck was already loaded up with baskets and crates heaped with corn and potatoes and cherries.
From I Survived the American Revolution, 1776 by Lauren Tarshis
Paddling up Narragansett Bay, a kayaker spotted a strange new development between the Quidnessett Country Club and the sea: a heaping pile of rocks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026
Little wonder then that Musk has been heaping compliments on ASML, posting on X Saturday that “ASML should be treasured. It is arguably the greatest company in Europe.”
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 8, 2026
There’s nothing like a heaping dose of geopolitics to remind investors of the risks of investing overseas.
From Barron's ● Mar. 22, 2026
A few of its bondholders have sued the company, claiming it hasn’t been transparent about the heaping costs required to meet its data-center-buildout goals.
From Slate ● Mar. 20, 2026
The bowl is heaping and I tackle it with the ferocity that I think a last meal deserves—shoving it all in me as if it owes me loot.
From "It’s Kind of a Funny Story" by Ned Vizzini
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.
