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.

In recent years, comedians have found themselves in hot water for making politically incorrect topics about everything from race to gender.

—James Hohmann

Examples of hot water in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Fill it with hot water and some dish dish soap and simply submerge the grater in the sudsy water. —Stacey Lastoe, Southern Living, 26 Nov. 2025

Another restaurant in Korea was in hot water earlier this year after its sign banning solo diners from watching social media videos circulated online, according to the South China Morning Post. —Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 26 Nov. 2025

These units run hot water or steam to create a comfortable heat. —Kathy Barnes, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 Nov. 2025

Eliminate air from hot water radiators. —Phaedra Trethan, USA Today, 22 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1840, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for hot water

• backwater
• bathwater
• blackwater
• breakwater
• deepwater
• edgewater
• feedwater
• floodwater
• freshwater
• granddaughter
• groundwater
• headwater

Kids Definition

hot water

noun

: a distressing situation : trouble

in hot water for not doing my chores