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warm

American  
[wawrm] / wɔrm /

adjective

  • warmer,
    comparative
  • warmest
    superlative
  1. having or giving out a moderate degree of heat, as perceived by the senses.

    a warm bath.

    Synonyms:
    heated, tepid, lukewarm
    Antonyms:
    cool
  2. of or at a moderately high temperature; characterized by comparatively high temperature.

    a warm oven; a warm climate; a warm summer.

    Antonyms:
    cool
  3. having a sensation of bodily heat.

    to be warm from fast walking.

    Antonyms:
    cool
  4. conserving or maintaining warmth or heat.

    warm clothes.

  5. (of colors) suggestive of warmth; inclining toward red or orange rather than toward green or blue.

  6. characterized by or showing lively feelings, passions, emotions, sympathies, etc..

    a warm heart; warm interest.

    Synonyms:
    ardent, emotional, fervid, fervent, enthusiastic, hearty
  7. strongly attached; intimate.

    warm friends.

    Synonyms:
    close, friendly
  8. cordial or hearty.

    a warm welcome.

    Synonyms:
    fervent
    Antonyms:
    aloof, unfriendly
  9. heated, irritated, or angry.

    to become warm when contradicted.

    Synonyms:
    furious, irate, vexed, annoyed
  10. animated, lively, brisk, or vigorous.

    a warm debate.

    Synonyms:
    vehement
    Antonyms:
    boring, lethargic
  11. strong or fresh.

    a warm scent.

  12. close to something sought, as in a game.

  13. uncomfortable or unpleasant.

    His opponents made things so warm that he decided to quit.

  14. British Informal. well off; in easy circumstances.


verb (used with object)

  • warms,
    present (3rd person singular)
  • warmed,
    past participle,  past
  • warming
    present participle
  1. to make warm; heat (often followed byup ).

    to warm one's hands; to warm up a room.

  2. to heat or cook (something) for reuse, as leftovers (usually followed by over orup ).

    to warm up yesterday's stew.

  3. to excite enthusiasm, ardor, cheerfulness, or vitality in (someone).

    The wine soon warmed the company.

    Synonyms:
    arouse, rouse, stir, waken, excite, animate
  4. to inspire with kindly feeling; affect with lively pleasure.

    It warms my soul to hear you say that.

  5. to fill (a person, crowd, etc.) with strong feelings, as hatred, anger, or zeal.

    Restrictions had warmed the crew to the point of mutiny.

verb (used without object)

  • warms,
    present (3rd person singular)
  • warmed,
    past participle,  past
  • warming
    present participle
  1. to become warm or warmer (often followed byup ).

    The room will warm up when the fire gets going.

  2. to become ardent, enthusiastic, animated, etc. (often followed by up orto ).

    The speaker quickly warmed to her subject.

  3. to grow kindly, friendly, or sympathetically disposed (often followed by to ortoward ).

    My heart warms toward him.

noun

  1. Informal. a warming.

    Sit by the fire and have a nice warm.

verb phrase

  1. warm down. see warm-down.

  2. warm up. see warmup.

idioms

  1. warm the bench, to serve as a substitute who rarely plays in a game.

    The young outfielder warmed the bench for the Yankees last season.

warm British  
/ wɔːm /

adjective

  1. characterized by or having a moderate degree of heat; moderately hot

  2. maintaining or imparting heat

    a warm coat

  3. having or showing ready affection, kindliness, etc

    a warm personality

  4. lively, vigorous, or passionate

    a warm debate

  5. cordial or enthusiastic; ardent

    warm support

  6. quickly or easily aroused

    a warm temper

  7. (of colours) predominantly red or yellow in tone

  8. (of a scent, trail, etc) recently made; strong

  9. near to finding a hidden object or discovering or guessing facts, as in children's games

  10. informal uncomfortable or disagreeable, esp because of the proximity of danger

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. (sometimes foll by up) to raise or be raised in temperature; make or become warm or warmer

  2. to make or become excited, enthusiastic, etc (about)

    he warmed to the idea of buying a new car

  3. to feel affection, kindness, etc (for someone)

    I warmed to her mother from the start

  4. (tr) to give a caning to

    I'll warm you in a minute

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. informal a warm place or area

    come into the warm

  2. informal the act or an instance of warming or being warmed

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
warm More Idioms  

    More idioms and phrases containing warm


Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Adjectives

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of warm

First recorded before 900; Middle English adjective werm, warm, wearm(e), Old English wearm; cognate with German warm, Old Norse varmr; akin to Latin formus “warm,” Greek thermós “warm,” Sanskrit gharmá- “heat,” Avestan garəma “hot,” Old Prussian gorme “heat,” Armenian ǰerm “warm”; the verb is akin to the adjective; the noun is derivative of the verb

Vocabulary lists containing warm

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Nirmala Singhvi, the lifestyle coordinator at the home, said: "Eric's story offers a warm and thoughtful look at creativity in later life, as well as the individuality and imagination that remain after a dementia diagnosis."

From BBC Sep. 20, 2026

The fourth is an environment that includes warm ocean water, plenty of atmospheric moisture, and relatively weak winds in the middle levels of the atmosphere.

From Science Daily Sep. 20, 2026

In an El Niño year, the mass of warm water that normally collects in the western Pacific shifts east toward South America, with ocean temperatures indicating how strong an event will be.

From The Wall Street Journal Sep. 18, 2026

As high pressure holds on across the south, many will stay largely dry and warm here through the rest of the week.

From BBC Sep. 18, 2026

He felt gloriously furry and warm as he licked Torak’s shoulder.

From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver

Yet even under those generally warmer conditions, winters in ancient Alaska would have been extremely challenging for a cold-blooded dinosaur.

From Science Daily Sep. 20, 2026

Even though kids are out of school for summer, the season can be a challenge for theme parks in warmer destinations like Florida that often deal with extreme heat.

From The Wall Street Journal Sep. 20, 2026

T. rex lived during the Cretaceous Period, when Earth's climate was much warmer than today.

From Science Daily Sep. 20, 2026

The sightings come as one of the UK's largest spider species, the wasp spider, was spotted in the Midlands as warmer temperatures pushed it more than 100 miles away from its usual habitat.

From BBC Sep. 19, 2026

At least as warm if not warmer than she had been sitting near the fire with Isobel.

From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern

While California recorded the warmest average daytime maximum temperature on record in August, the planet as a whole tied with July 2023 for the Earth’s hottest month on record.

From Los Angeles Times Sep. 11, 2026

Copernicus also said that August "marked the end of western Europe's warmest summer" that surpassed the long-standing record set in 2003.

From Barron's Sep. 10, 2026

That prospect follows a summer that drove western Europe to its warmest on record.

From BBC Sep. 10, 2026

San Juan, for example, experienced one of its warmest Julys on record.

From Science Daily Sep. 4, 2026

None of the teachers were interested in teaching anything, and after a while it felt oddly like a snow day, an in-school snow day on the warmest, clearest, most beautiful day of the year.

From "Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story" by Nora Raleigh Baskin

QB Grady Long of La Serna warms up like a pitcher with long toss throwing a football 50 yards.

From Los Angeles Times Sep. 19, 2026

As is well known, carbon dioxide warms the Earth.

From BBC Sep. 8, 2026

Lowell is one of two storms in the Pacific Ocean right now, where a near-record strength El Nino climate episode warms the waters.

From Barron's Sep. 7, 2026

Cooled by seawater, the facility pumps its excess heat into a system that warms the adjacent town.

From The Wall Street Journal Sep. 4, 2026

Besides, her hand warms quickly when I hold it.

From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman

I tossed it with store-bought ravioli and shredded rotisserie chicken warmed in olive oil, put peas on the side, and waited for the part where I needed to fix something.

From Salon Sep. 20, 2026

“It takes me a while to get warmed up,” he says.

From Los Angeles Times Sep. 18, 2026

The World Meteorological Organization says the oceans have warmed more than twice as fast over the past two decades than they did between 1960 and 2005.

From BBC Sep. 8, 2026

"The climate system has significantly warmed over the last 20 years or so," he told AFP.

From Barron's Sep. 3, 2026

Llewelyn made a small fire inside a circle of stones, and they warmed their hands to banish the cold.

From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova

If the sauce needs nothing from me, I can spend that energy making dessert, mixing a cocktail for guests, warming bread — or simply deciding which sparkling water sounds good.

From Salon Sep. 20, 2026

Oaks support a wide range of organisms, anchoring entire ecosystems, and also serve the vital task of storing carbon on a warming planet.

From Los Angeles Times Sep. 19, 2026

This upcoming quieter spell in the UK is not influenced by the record-breaking Pacific Ocean warming from El Niño, but there could be impacts later in the autumn.

From BBC Sep. 18, 2026

Scientists are increasingly interested in ways to reduce methane in the atmosphere because the gas is a major contributor to global warming and disappears much faster than carbon dioxide.

From Science Daily Sep. 15, 2026

“The year is 2047, and global warming has caused the seas to rise one hundred feet. The world economy has been destroyed. No technology exists! The internet is DEAD!”

From "Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat" by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth

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