Off to one side, the militia was heaping up wood for a bonfire. [VERBPARTICLE noun]
[Also VERB noun PARTICLE]
Synonyms: pile, store, collect, gather More Synonyms of heap
3. verb
If you heap praise or criticism on someone or something, you give them a lot of praise or criticism.
The head of the navy heaped scorn on both the methods and motives of the conspirators. [V n + on/upon]
4. quantifier
Heaps of something or a heap of something is a large quantity of it.
[informal]
You have heaps of time. [+ of]
...a job that might suit someone with heaps of experience.
I got in a heap of trouble. [+ of]
5.
See at the bottom of the heap
6.
See in a heap
More Synonyms of heap
heap in British English
(hiːp)
noun
1.
a collection of articles or mass of material gathered together in one place
2. (often plural; usually foll byof) informal
a large number or quantity
3. give them heaps
4. give it heaps
5. informal
a place or thing that is very old, untidy, unreliable, etc
the car was a heap
adverb
6. heaps
verb
7. (often foll byup or together)
to collect or be collected into or as if into a heap or pile
to heap up wealth
8. (tr; often foll by with, on, or upon)
to load or supply (with) abundantly
to heap with riches
Derived forms
heaper (ˈheaper)
noun
Word origin
Old English héap; related to Old Frisian hāp, Old Saxon hōp, Old High German houf
heap in American English
(hip)
noun
1.
a pile, mass, or mound of things jumbled together
2. [often pl.]; Informal
a great number or amount
a heap of toys, heaps of money
3. US, Slang
an automobile, esp. an old, dilapidated one
verb transitive
4.
to make a heap of; bring together into a pile
5.
to give or supply in large amounts; load
to heap gifts upon someone
6.
to fill (a plate, dry measure, etc.) full or to overflowing
verb intransitive
7.
to accumulate or rise in a heap, or pile
Word origin
ME hepe, a troop, heap < OE heap, a troop, band, multitude, akin to Ger hauf(en), Du hoop < IE *keub- < base *keu-, bend, arch > hop1, hive
More idioms containing
heap
at the top of the heap
at the bottom of the heap
Examples of 'heap' in a sentence
heap
The key to a successful compost heap lies in balance.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Get those last few away to the compost heap or tucked up under shrubs.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
It does include those at the bottom of the heap.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The best way to compost these is to shred them and mix them with your general compost heap.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Large compost heaps often get too hot, so aim for a heap of one cubic metre in volume.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
A rooftop compost heap is a must, too.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
I'm still very much the same person, but with the privilege of not being at the bottom of the heap any more.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
Previous judgments have heaped criticism upon those responsible.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
They have both had a big fat load of smug vitriol heaped upon their heads.
The Sun (2013)
They were at the bottom of the heap.
The Sun (2010)
So how has this journeyman attitude kept her on top of the heap?
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
When she entered she almost dropped in a heap upon the floor.
Frances Hodgson Burnett A Little Princess (1905)
Then you remember that this is the countryside and that the countryside is one big compost heap.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
What they say should be taken with a large heap of salt.
The Sun (2016)
Your compost heap will have different ideas.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
What remained was heaped in a pile in the center of the apartment.
Christianity Today (2000)
Company bosses also heaped praise on our jobs fairs.
The Sun (2015)
We smell a whole heap of trouble.
The Sun (2015)
Will that simply buy me a whole heap of trouble?
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
All conceivable evils are heaped upon the heads of the poor.
Kishlansky, Mark A. (editor) Sources of the West: Readings in Western Civilization, Volume 1: From the Beginningto 1715 (1995)
Heap top growth in one corner of the plot to rot down into garden compost.
The Sun (2014)
One heaped tablespoon of raisins or sultanas and three dried apricots also counts as a portion.
The Sun (2006)
There are numerous books available on how to begin a compost heap and introduce organic gardening methods.
Lashford, Stephanie The Residue Report - an action plan for safer food (1988)
We left the lot all piled in a heap in the middle.
Max Arthur Lost Voices of the Edwardians: 19011910 in the words of the Men & Women Who WereThere (2006)
The eastern end, the quarry floor, contains many large spoil heaps.
Perring, Franklyn A Guide to Britain's Conservation Heritage (1991)
In other languages
heap
British English: heap /hiːp/ NOUN
A heap of things is a messy pile of them.
There was a heap of clothes in the corner of the room.
American English: heap
Arabic: كَوْمَة
Brazilian Portuguese: amontoado
Chinese: 堆
Croatian: hrpa
Czech: halda
Danish: dynge
Dutch: hoop stapel
European Spanish: montón
Finnish: kasa
French: tas
German: Haufen
Greek: σωρός
Italian: mucchio
Japanese: 積み重なったもの
Korean: 무더기
Norwegian: haug
Polish: sterta
European Portuguese: amontoado
Romanian: grămadă
Russian: куча
Latin American Spanish: montón
Swedish: hög trave
Thai: กอง
Turkish: yığın
Ukrainian: купа
Vietnamese: đống
All related terms of 'heap'
ant-heap
a mound of soil , leaves, etc, near the entrance of an ants ' nest , carried and deposited there by the ants while constructing the nest
dung heap
a heap of dung
junk heap
an accumulation of refuse and discarded matter
muck heap
a pile of dung , soil or refuse
slag heap
A slag heap is a hill made from waste material , such as rock and mud , left over from mining.
in a heap
If someone collapses in a heap , they fall heavily and untidily and do not move.
manure heap
a pile of animal excreta, esp on a farm , kept for use as fertiliser
trash heap
a heap of rubbish or garbage
compost heap
an outdoor pile of compostabale material that degrades into compost
scrapheap
If you say that someone has been thrown on the scrapheap , you mean that they have been forced to leave their job by an uncaring employer and are unlikely to get other work.
to pour scorn on something heap scorn on
If you pour scorn on someone or something or heap scorn on them, you say that you think they are stupid and worthless .
at the bottom of the heap at the top of the heap
Someone who is at the bottom of the heap or at the top of the heap is low down or high up in society or an organization .
at the top of the heap
high up in society or in an organization
the trash heap of history
a figurative or imaginative place where forgotten things or people go
heap coals of fire on someone's head
to cause someone to feel remorse by returning good for evil : Prov. 25:22
Chinese translation of 'heap'
heap
(hiːp)
n(c)
(= pile)[of clothes, papers]堆 (duī) (个(個), gè)
vt
to heap sth on sth[sand, earth, clothes]将(將)某物堆在某物上 (jiāng mǒuwù duīzài mǒuwù shang) (food) 将(將)某物装(裝)满(滿)某物 (jiāng mǒuwù zhuāngmǎn mǒuwù)
heaps or a heap of (inf)[time, work, money etc]大量 (dàliàng)
to heap praise/criticism on sb对(對)某人大加赞(讚)赏(賞)/批评(評) (duì mǒurén dàjiā zànshǎng/pīpíng)
1 (noun)
Definition
a pile of things lying one on top of another
a heap of bricks
Synonyms
pile
a pile of books
lot
collection
He has gathered a large collection of prints and paintings over the years.
store
I handed over my store of chocolate biscuits.
mountain
They are faced with a mountain of bureaucracy.
mass
On the desk is a mass of books and papers.
stack
There were stacks of books on the bedside table and floor.
rick
mound
huge mounds of dirt
accumulation
accumulations of dirt
stockpile
stockpiles of chemical weapons
hoard
a hoard of silver and jewels
aggregation
Society is more than just an aggregation of individuals.
2 (noun)
Definition
a large number or quantity
(informal
You have heaps of time.
Synonyms
a lot
lots
plenty
masses
load(s) (informal)
ocean(s)
great deal
quantities
tons (informal)
stack(s)
lashings (British, informal)
abundance
a staggering abundance of food
oodles (informal)
(verb)
Definition
to collect into a pile
They were heaping up wood for a bonfire.
Synonyms
pile
He was piling clothes into the case.
store
storing away cash that will come in useful later on
collect
Two young girls were collecting firewood.
gather
She started gathering up her things.
stack
They are stacked neatly in piles of three.
accumulate
Lead can accumulate in the body until toxic levels are reached.
mound
amass
We didn't enquire as to how she had amassed her fortune.
stockpile
People are stockpiling food for the coming winter.
hoard
They've begun to hoard food and gasoline.
bank
phrasal verb
See heap something on someone
Additional synonyms
in the sense of abundance
Definition
a great amount
a staggering abundance of food
Synonyms
plenty,
heap (informal),
bounty,
exuberance,
profusion,
plethora,
affluence,
fullness,
opulence,
plenitude,
fruitfulness,
copiousness,
ampleness,
cornucopia,
plenteousness,
plentifulness
in the sense of accumulate
Definition
to gather together in an increasing quantity
Lead can accumulate in the body until toxic levels are reached.