hot water

noun, Informal.
1.
trouble; a predicament:
His skipping classes will get him into real hot water when exam time comes.
Origin
1530-40
Examples from the web for hot water
  • The cocoons were then put in hot water to facilitate the difficult and tedious task of extracting the silk.
  • Although the concept of tea is simple-dry leaf infused in hot water-the manufacture of it is not intuitive at all.
  • Gently heating milk for cheese, in a pot immersed in a larger pot of hot water, gave us the idea.
  • Thoroughly rinse the bottles with hot water using a jet bottle washer.
  • Add a few more jars filled with hot water to the cooler to keep the milk warm, and cover the cooler.
  • No wood for hot water, so had to use ashes and lye again.
  • The jail cell was bitterly cold, the toilet was broken, he had no hot water and no soap.
  • Relatedly, dragging out the degree may also get you in hot water with your school of graduate studies, supervisor or department.
  • When you're ready to shower, lower the framework and secure your bag of hot water to the top.
  • The soap and hot water will thoroughly sanitize them.
Word Origin and History for hot water
n.

c.1400, literal; 1530s in figurative sense of "trouble."

Slang definitions & phrases for hot water

hot water

noun phrase

Difficulty; trouble; embarrassment: got herself into hot water by marrying a Siamese prince (1875+)

Related Terms

in hot water


Idioms and Phrases with hot water

hot water

Trouble or difficulty, as in She's deep in political hot water, or We got in hot water over the car deal, or He's finally paid his tuition and is out of hot water with the school. This metaphoric term alludes to water hot enough to burn one. [ First half of 1500s ]
Also see: in trouble with