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

But Texas could heat up again at any time thanks to proven stars such as All-American catcher Reese Atwood (.408, 17 HRs), senior star Mia Scott (.438) and sophomore pitcher Teagan Kavan (21-4, 2.46), who threw 14 consecutive scoreless innings in last year’s WCWS. —Stewart Mandel, New York Times, 15 May 2025

The grill heats up quickly and will stay consistent throughout the entire cook. —Christopher Murray May Earn A Commission If You Buy Through Our Referral Links. This Content Was Created By A Team That Works Independently From The Fox Newsroom., FOXNews.com, 13 May 2025

In the recipe for two published in the study, the researchers used 5 grams (0.18 ounce) of cornstarch or potato starch dissolved in water, heated up gently to form a gel, then cooled down with more water before being blended with 200 grams (7 ounces) of pecorino cheese. —Francesca Giuliani Hoffman, CNN Money, 9 May 2025

After a terrible slump, the third baseman is starting to heat up. —Patrick Saunders, Denver Post, 9 May 2025

Rhymes for heat up

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