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Synonyms

hothead

American  
[hot-hed] / ˈhɒtˌhɛd /

noun

  1. an impetuous or short-tempered person.

hothead British  
/ ˈhɒtˌhɛd /

noun

  1. an excitable or fiery person

"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

Etymology

Origin of hothead

First recorded in 1650–60; hot + head

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.

Yet the "hothead" in the headlines is now a head coach described as "Mr Calm".

From BBC • Oct. 6, 2025

A young hothead named Matteo was sick of playing nice.

From Slate • Dec. 15, 2024

Cohen, once known as a hothead and a paid bully, did not explode as he did when testifying last fall at Trump’s civil fraud trial.

From Seattle Times • May 16, 2024

This demeanor is unlike the passionate, hothead ready to tell Sokka or any man off in the original.

From Salon • Mar. 3, 2024

Nothing radical, no hothead stuff, just ringing a few doorbells for Gene McCarthy, composing a few tedious, uninspired editorials for the campus newspaper.

From "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.