kilowatt-hour

noun

kilo·​watt-hour ˈki-lə-ˌwät-ˈau̇(-ə)r 

ˈkē-lə-

: a unit of work or energy equal to that expended by one kilowatt in one hour or to 3.6 million joules

Examples of kilowatt-hour in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

From May 2024 to May 2025, the average residential price for one kilowatt-hour of electricity increased by almost 6.5%, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). —Presley Bo Tyler, USA Today, 8 Sep. 2025

The power would cost 9.8 cents per kilowatt-hour, locked in for 20 years. —Sydney Lake, Fortune, 5 Sep. 2025

Entirely domestically produced, around forty-one units are currently deployed globally, with each capable of producing 10 billion kilowatt-hours of clean energy annually. —Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 31 Aug. 2025

If a customer in the inland zone consumes 600 kilowatt-hours per month, their new bill will be $269, or about $8 less than under the old bill structure. —Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1892, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for kilowatt-hour

• candlepower
• cauliflower
• overpower
• superpower
• vavasour
• waterpower
• airpower
• brainpower
• devour
• empower
• firepower
• horsepower

Kids Definition

kilowatt-hour

noun

: a unit of work or energy equal to that expended by one kilowatt in one hour and equal to 3.6 million joules

Medical Definition

kilowatt-hour

noun

: a unit of work or energy equal to that expended by one kilowatt in one hour