things are hotting up vs. things are heating up

[Torsten]

What is the difference between these two phrases
Things are hotting up.
Things are heating up.

Many thanks,
Torsten

TOEIC listening, question-response: How come you didn't go to the leadership conference?

[Skrej]

Hi Torsten,

The second one is the only one that makes sense. Hot is an adjective, so you can't use it as a present continuous verb as the first sentence tries to do.

Hot is an adjective, heat can be either a noun or a verb.
_________________
Plan to be spontaneous tomorrow.
***
Did you hear they arrested the Energizer Bunny on battery charges?
***

[Shyone]

[Skrej]

This is a purely British colloquialism, apparently. I've found it listed as informal, and non-standard, which I suppose depends on the viewpoint of the author, but it's purely 100% British.

To anybody not speaking BrE, it doesn't make a lick of sense, and sounds like an entry level ESL learner's mistake.

It sounds as erroneous to my ears as "it's colding down", but then it's not my place to presume to correct another variant of English.
_________________
Plan to be spontaneous tomorrow.
***
Did you hear they arrested the Energizer Bunny on battery charges?
***

[Alan]

Some like it hot?
_________________
English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Present Simple

[Adrianpmills]

[Prezbucky]

In the US, if you say "Things are hotting up," you'll be answered by a quizical look -- the verb "to hot up" is not used here.

But then, Brits refer to soccer shoes as "boots" -- which, in the US, is used to refer to cowboy boots, work boots, winter boots, etc... substantial footware. "Hotting up" is just one more difference.

(not sure why I brought up "shoes vs. boots"... guess I just wanted to get it off my chest. hehe)
_________________
Billie Jean is not my lover. Hee.

[Jamie (K)]

"Hotting up" sounds ungrammatical to me, and vaguely sexual. As Skrej has pointed out, it is as ungrammatical as "colding down". It's just another of those cases that demonstrate that British English is not always good English, and that the British are also capable of abusing the language.

[Adrianpmills]

The expression is good enough for America's premier global news organisation:

http://www-cgi.cnn.com/2007/SPORT/06/01/day.six/

So use it with gusto. It has the added advantage of annoying some septics.

[Torsten]

It seems that there actually might be quite a few Americans who have had the audicity to use a 'British expression'. Here is one of them:

'Virtualisation hotting up in 2009
If you've got money, is this where you should spend it?

By Tim Ferguson

Published: Friday 13 February 2009

Virtualisation technology is going to become even more significant in 2009 with businesses increasingly realising its potential benefits.

Analyst house Gartner predicts global revenue from virtualisation software will grow by 43 per cent this year, hitting $2.7bn, compared to $1.9bn in 2008....'

TOEIC listening, talks: Supermarket employee is informing customers on the latest food specials

[Jamie (K)]

[Jamie (K)]

[Adrianpmills]