heap

¹heap

noun \ˈhēp\

Definition of HEAP

1

: a collection of things thrown one on another : pile

2

: a great number or large quantity : lot

Examples of HEAP

1. He dumped the grass clippings into the compost heap.
2. a heap of old newspapers
3. She left her dirty clothes in a heap on the floor.
4. He's in a heap of trouble!
5. I can't believe he's still driving that old heap.

Origin of HEAP

Middle English heep, from Old English hēap; akin to Old High German houf heap

First Known Use: before 12th century

Related to HEAP

Synonyms

abundance, barrel, basketful, boatload, bucket, bunch, bundle, bushel, carload, chunk, deal, dozen, fistful, gobs, good deal, lot, hundred, lashings (also lashins) [chiefly British], loads, mass, mess, mountain, much, multiplicity, myriad, oodles, pack, passel, peck, pile, plateful, plenitude, plentitude, plenty, pot, potful, profusion, quantity, raft, reams, scads, sheaf, shipload, sight, slew, spate, stack, store, ton, truckload, volume, wad, wealth, yard

Antonyms

ace, bit, dab, dram, driblet, glimmer, handful, hint, lick, little, mite, mouthful, nip, ounce, peanuts, pinch, pittance, scruple, shade, shadow, smidgen (also smidgeon or smidgin or smidge), speck, spot, sprinkle, sprinkling, strain, streak, suspicion, tad, taste, touch, trace

Related Words

epidemic, plague, rash; bonanza, embarrassment, excess, overabundance, overage, overkill, overmuch, oversupply, plethora, redundancy, superabundance, superfluity, surfeit, surplus; deluge, flood, overflow; army, bevy, cram, crowd, crush, drove, flock, herd, horde, host, legion, mob, multitude, press, score, sea, swarm, throng; gazillion, jillion, kazillion, million, thousands, trillion, zillion

Near Antonyms

atom, crumb, dot, fleck, flyspeck, fragment, grain, granule, iota, jot, modicum, molecule, mote, nubbin, particle, ray, scintilla, scrap, shred, tittle, whit; smatter, smattering; dash, drop, morsel, shot; piece, portion, section; absence, dearth, famine, lack, paucity, poverty, scarceness, scarcity, shortage, undersupply, want; deficiency, deficit, inadequacy, insufficiency, meagerness, scantiness, scantness, skimpiness

Rhymes with HEAP

beep, bleep, cheap, cheep, creep, deep, jeep, Jeep, keep, leap, neap, neep, peep, reap, seep, sheep, sleep, steep, sweep, threap, veep, weep

²heap

transitive verb

Definition of HEAP

1

a : to throw or lay in a heap : pile or collect in great quantity <his sole object was to heap up riches>

b : to form or round into a heap <heaped the dirt into a mound>

c : to form a heap on : load heavily <heap the plates with food>

2

: to accord or bestow lavishly or in large quantities <heaped honors upon them>

Examples of HEAP

1. <the critics heaped scorn on the wannabe blockbuster and its implausible plot>
2. <heaped the stones in a corner of the yard>

First Known Use of HEAP

before 12th century

Related to HEAP

Synonyms

rain, lavish, pour, shower

Antonyms

unpile

Related Words

gush, stream; flood, inundate, overflow, overwhelm, swamp; bombard, hail

Near Antonyms

hold back, keep, reserve, retain, withhold