HEAT


Meaning of HEAT in English

I. heat 1 S2 W2 /hiːt/ BrE AmE noun

[ Word Family: noun : ↑ heat , ↑ heater , ↑ heating ; verb : ↑ heat , ↑ overheat ; adverb : ↑ heatedly ; adjective : ↑ heated ≠ UNHEATED ]

[ Language: Old English ; Origin: hætu ]

1 . WARMTH [uncountable] warmth or the quality of being hot:

Ice needs heat to melt.

Insulating the attic is a good way to reduce heat loss.

2 . the heat very hot weather or a high temperature:

The heat was making them tired.

Angela liked to rest during the heat of the day (=the hottest part of the day) .

Firefighters were beaten back by the intense heat.

3 . IN COOKING [countable usually singular, uncountable] the level of temperature used when cooking or heating something

(a) low/medium/high heat

Cook the chicken portions over a high heat.

turn off/down/up the heat

When the milk comes to the boil, turn off the heat.

Now reduce the heat and cover the pan.

4 . STRONG FEELINGS [uncountable] strong feelings, especially anger or excitement:

Reconciliation services can take the heat out of (=reduce the anger in) the dispute.

in the heat of something

Quick decisions had to be made in the heat of the negotiations.

In the heat of the moment (=when feelings were very strong) Nick threatened to resign.

5 . PRESSURE [uncountable] strong pressure on someone:

The heat is on (=there is a lot of pressure) as schools struggle to finish their entries by the deadline.

The team turned up the heat (=used more effort against their opponents) in the last few minutes to score two more goals.

There was a lot of heat, and it affected our relationship.

6 . SYSTEM TO HEAT BUILDING [uncountable] American English the system in a house or other building that keeps it warm in the winter, or the warmth from this system SYN heating British English :

Can you turn up the heat?

7 . IN A RACE [countable] a part of a race or competition whose winners then compete against each other in the next part:

Bill finished second in his heat.

8 . on heat British English , in heat American English if a female animal is on heat, her body is ready to have sex with a male

⇨ ↑ dead heat , ↑ white heat , ⇨ if you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen at ↑ stand 1 (16)

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COLLOCATIONS (for Meaning 2)

■ adjectives

▪ the intense/extreme heat

She was in need of a cooling drink in the intense heat.

▪ the searing/stifling/sweltering/scorching etc heat (=extreme heat)

The desert is a place of scorching heat by day and bitter cold by night.

▪ dry heat

The earth had cracked in the endless dry heat.

▪ humid heat (=when the weather is hot and damp)

the humid heat of a tropical forest

▪ tropical heat (=the warm, damp weather in the hottest parts of the world)

He stepped off the plane into the tropical heat.

▪ the midday heat

The air shimmered in the midday heat.

▪ the summer heat

He went indoors to escape the summer heat.

▪ 80/90 etc degree heat

Why would you want to play tennis in a hundred-degree heat?

■ phrases

▪ the heat of the day

The locals retreat to their cool houses and sleep during the heat of the day.

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THESAURUS

■ part of a competition

▪ round one of the parts of a competition that you have to finish or win before you can go on to the next part:

Henman lost in the second round of the competition.

▪ heat one of several races or competitions whose winners then compete against each other:

She came second in her heat, with a time of 23.2 seconds.

II. heat 2 S3 BrE AmE verb [transitive]

[ Word Family: noun : ↑ heat , ↑ heater , ↑ heating ; verb : ↑ heat , ↑ overheat ; adverb : ↑ heatedly ; adjective : ↑ heated ≠ UNHEATED ]

to make something become warm or hot SYN warm up :

Heat the milk until it boils.

heat something through phrasal verb

to heat food thoroughly

heat up phrasal verb

1 . to become warm or hot, or to make something become warm or hot:

The stove takes a while to heat up.

heat something ↔ up

I heated up the remains of last night’s supper.

2 . if a situation heats up, it becomes dangerous or full of problems

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English.      Longman - Словарь современного английского языка.