hot water
noun
: a difficult or dangerous situation : trouble entry 1 sense 4
—used with in or into
But this poor fellow was always getting into hot water, and if there was a wrong way of doing a thing, was sure to hit upon it.—
Richard Henry Dana, Jr.
Richard Henry Dana, Jr.In recent years, comedians have found themselves in hot water for making politically incorrect topics about everything from race to gender.—James Hohmann
James HohmannExamples of hot water in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The bill would also tweak the state’s A-F accountability system, which recently landed the Fort Worth Independent School District in hot water.
—Lina Ruiz, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 May 2025
At last night’s BAFTAs, Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone director and producer Jamie Roberts, who has been in hot water over that doc, won an award for a separate show about Ukraine.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 12 May 2025
At the time of the inspection, none of the faucets in the facility could provide hot water.
—Veronica Fernandez-Alvarado, Sacbee.com, 9 May 2025
The researchers found evidence that osmium from the remains of the asteroid buried kilometers beneath the impact crater was continuously released in the Gulf of Mexico as hot water moved beneath the shattered seafloor and up toward the surface.
—David Bressan, Forbes.com, 29 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hot water
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Lina Ruiz, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 May 2025
At last night’s BAFTAs, Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone director and producer Jamie Roberts, who has been in hot water over that doc, won an award for a separate show about Ukraine.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 12 May 2025
At the time of the inspection, none of the faucets in the facility could provide hot water.
—Veronica Fernandez-Alvarado, Sacbee.com, 9 May 2025
The researchers found evidence that osmium from the remains of the asteroid buried kilometers beneath the impact crater was continuously released in the Gulf of Mexico as hot water moved beneath the shattered seafloor and up toward the surface.
—David Bressan, Forbes.com, 29 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hot water
Cite this Entry
“Hot water.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hot%20water. Accessed 28 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share