heat up

phrasal verb

heated up; heating up; heats up

: to become warm or hot

The morning started out cold but it heated up quickly.

: to become more active, intense, or angry

Their conversation started to heat up.

Competition between the two companies is heating up.

heat (something) up or heat up (something) : to cause (something) to become warm or hot

Could you heat up the vegetables, please?

Examples of heat up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Temperature are heating up in California, which can bring snakes out from hiding to bask in your backyard. —

Jacqueline Pinedo, Sacramento Bee, 23 May 2024 Air in front of the objects is compressed and heats up, which cooks, erodes, cracks open and obliterates the debris. —

Robin George Andrews, New York Times, 20 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for heat up

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'heat up.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.