heat up

phrasal verb

heated up; heating up; heats up

1

: to become warm or hot

The morning started out cold but it heated up quickly.

2

: to become more active, intense, or angry

Their conversation started to heat up.

Competition between the two companies is heating up.

3

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

Interest in credit cards is expected to heat up in 2026. —Renée Onque, CNBC, 16 Jan. 2026

Even if things do heat up there, the impact on the market is likely to be muted. —Tim McDonnell, semafor.com, 15 Jan. 2026

Sophie Turner and Kit Harington’s onscreen romance is heating up in a new trailer for their upcoming gothic thriller The Dreadful. —Mariel Turner, HollywoodReporter, 15 Jan. 2026

According to stone fabricator Landmark Surfaces, marble countertops will resist heat up to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, or 177 degrees Celsius. —Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 15 Jan. 2026

Rhymes for heat up

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup
• markup