sizzle
Americanverb (used without object)
-
sizzles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
sizzled,
past participle, past
-
sizzling
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
sizzles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
sizzled,
past participle, past
-
sizzling
present participle
noun
-
sizzles
plural
verb
-
to make the hissing sound characteristic of frying fat
-
informal to be very hot
-
informal to be very angry
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
sizzlesimple
-
sizzlessimple
-
have sizzledperfect
-
has sizzledperfect
-
am sizzlingprogressive
-
are sizzlingprogressive
-
is sizzlingprogressive
-
have been sizzlingperfect progressive
-
has been sizzlingperfect progressive
Past
-
sizzledsimple
-
had sizzledperfect
-
was sizzlingprogressive
-
were sizzlingprogressive
-
had been sizzlingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of sizzle
1595–1605; imitative; see -le
Explanation
When things sizzle, they make a sound like the hissing and popping you hear when you fry food in fat. Drop pieces of bacon in a hot pan and they'll sizzle. A grilled cheese sandwich sizzles in melted butter, and veggie burgers sizzle on a hot grill. You can also use sizzle in a figurative way, when it's so hot that you feel like food in a hot pan: "I'm not going to the pool today, I'll sizzle in the heat." This verb dates from about 1600, and it probably comes from the imitative Middle English sissen.
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:
But you can still watch a sizzle reel of Argentina defeating Egypt and follow Switzerland vs.
From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026
The 23-time major champion shows some sizzle, but bows out to 20-year-old Maya Joint in three sets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
Tuesday’s Google I/O developer conference failed to pack the sizzle that some investors were hoping for.
From MarketWatch ● May 20, 2026
Danielle Postel-Vinay and Gary Phillips pay homage to literary legends with stories that sizzle with personality and authenticity.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2026
It lit with a sizzle that reminded me of every July Fourth with my family.
From "Looking for Alaska" by John Green
The next day is deep-clean Monday, when First Watch dishwashers scrub coffee urns and the greasy grates where bacon sizzles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 12, 2026
That distinct fat melts slowly in the oven, creating a loose, craggy structure that sizzles into a proper crust on the outside while staying plush within.
From Salon ● Mar. 11, 2026
"The leads are captivating and their chemistry sizzles," he said.
From BBC ● Feb. 10, 2026
It’s a movie where music sizzles and wails out of every pore.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 16, 2025
She plops dough onto a pan so hot it sizzles.
From "Born Behind Bars" by Padma Venkatraman
Pots clanged and oil sizzled inside the London kitchen of Syrian chef Imad Alarnab, as the former refugee who fled his country's civil war recalled hosting King Charles III.
From Barron's ● Mar. 2, 2026
When Mom thought the oil was close, she would flick a little flour into it, and if it sizzled and shimmied just right, she knew it was ready.
From Salon ● Apr. 1, 2025
Steam rises from snack stands selling noodles and sizzled octopus on sticks on the Chinese side.
From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2024
Canzone, 26, sizzled this spring, hitting .309 with four homers and 13 RBI, perhaps the Mariners’ most improved player.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 27, 2024
The gems fell out of his hair and sizzled in the snow.
From "The Son of Neptune" by Rick Riordan
For many, the smell of charcoal and sizzling meat is the scent of summer.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026
Many of Mr. Coppola’s recollections are sensory: roasted peppers, his grandma’s sizzling meatballs, a neighbor’s homemade wine sweetened with peaches—“smells and tastes that intoxicate me to this day.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
Hunched over sizzling grills and shrouded in smoke, trainees at the Yueyang Barbecue Academy in southern China roast skewer after skewer of succulent beef tendon, perfecting the skills that could land them a restaurant job.
From Barron's ● Jul. 2, 2026
Rocking a silk shirt adorned with rhinestones, and backed by his incredibly nimble band, the Cuban-born virtuoso kicked off his four-night residency at the club with sizzling banter and panache.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2026
And immediately, mixed with a sizzling sound, there came to Shasta a simply delightful smell.
From "The Horse and His Boy" by C.S. Lewis
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.
