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

Photo : Matthew Millman Solar panels heat up the water for the pool. —Tori Latham, Robb Report, 9 Apr. 2025

Meanwhile, the competition in the AI race has only been heating up, as Chinese startup DeepSeek unveiled a powerful model in January. —Bryan Mena, CNN Money, 8 Apr. 2025

As the global temperature rises, and the tension around Greenland heats up, as the U.S. reconsiders its role in the Arctic, CIFF and CPHFW stand at the center of a quietly powerful cultural narrative. —Stephan Rabimov, Forbes.com, 8 Apr. 2025

Reavis 5-4 (8) Tino Villagomez heats up at the top of the lineup as Rams go 2-2 in Florida tournament. 10. —Steve Millar, Chicago Tribune, 7 Apr. 2025

Rhymes for heat up

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