turn up the heat on

Idioms and Phrases

Also, put the heat or screws or squeeze on ; tighten the screws on . Pressure someone, as in The cops turned up the heat on drivers who show signs of drunkenness , or They said they'd tighten the screws on her if she didn't confess . All of these slangy terms allude to forms of physical coercion or torture. The first dates from about 1930, the variants using screws from the mid-1800s, and squeeze from the late 1700s.