kilowatt-hour

American  

[kil-uh-wot-ouuhr, -ou-er] / ˈkɪl əˌwɒtˈaʊər, -ˈaʊ ər /

noun

1. a unit of energy, equivalent to the energy transferred or expended in one hour by one kilowatt of power; approximately 1.34 horsepower-hours. kWh, K.W.H., kwhr

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kilowatt-hour British  

noun

1.  kWh.  a unit of energy equal to the work done by a power of 1000 watts in one hour

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kilowatt-hour Scientific  

1. A unit used to measure energy, especially electrical energy in commercial applications. One kilowatt-hour is equal to one kilowatt of power produced or consumed over a period of one hour, or 3.6 × 10 ⁶ joules.

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kilowatt-hour Cultural  

1. A unit of energy: the expenditure of one kilowatt of power for one hour. A toaster running for an hour will use about this much energy.

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Etymology

Origin of kilowatt-hour

First recorded in 1890–95

Compare meaning

How does kilowatt-hour compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• kilowatt vs. kilowatt-hour

Example Sentences

But as heat pumps run on electricity, he is now paying around 27p per kilowatt-hour, compared with less than 6p for gas that powers a boiler - more than four times as much.

From BBC • Apr. 15, 2026

Its current energy rate is 8.5-cents per kilowatt-hour, which rises to around 14.3 to 14.5 cents after adding utility transmission-and-distribution costs.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 4, 2026

The average U.S. residential electricity rate has been climbing less than 1 cent a kilowatt-hour in recent years.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 29, 2025

The average electricity price in U.S. cities sits at roughly 19 cents per kilowatt-hour External link, up 43% since the end of 2019, 18 percentage points greater than the jump in overall consumer prices.

From Barron's • Oct. 19, 2025

One kilowatt-hour per sol is ... it can be anything . . . um ...

From "The Martian" by Andy Weir