- 1 the measurement in degrees of how hot or cold a thing or place is high/low temperatures a fall/drop in temperature a rise in temperature The temperature has risen (by) five degrees. Heat the oven to a temperature of 200°C (= degrees centigrade). Some places have had temperatures in the 40s (= over 40° centigrade). see also absolute temperature, room temperature Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivehigh, hot, warm, … verb + temperaturehave, heat something to, increase, … temperature + verbgo up, increase, rise, … temperature + nounconditions, change, difference, … prepositionat… temperature, in a temperature, temperature above, … phrasesa change in temperature, a variation in temperature, a range of temperature, … See full entry
- 2 the measurement of how hot somebody’s body is to take somebody’s temperature (= measure the temperature of somebody’s body using a special instrument) (British English) Does he have a temperature (= is it higher than normal, because of illness)? She's running a temperature (= it is higher than normal). He's in bed with a temperature of 40°. In North American English you can take somebody’s temperature but in the other examples the word fever is used. compare fever Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivehigh, slight verb + temperaturehave, run, take, … temperature + verbgo up, rise, come down, … prepositiontemperature of See full entry See related entries: Being ill Word Originlate Middle English: from French température or Latin temperatura, from temperare ‘restrain’. The word originally denoted the state of being tempered or mixed, later becoming synonymous with temperament. The modern sense dates from the late 17th cent.Extra examples He’s in bed with a temperature of 102°. Heat the oven to a temperature of 200°C. Overnight the temperature fell as low as -30°C. Serve the wine at room temperature. She’s running a temperature. Some places had temperatures in the forties during the heat wave. The desert is a place of temperature extremes. The fish prefer a temperature of 24–27°C. The increase in the mean global temperature will be about 0.3°C per decade. The nurse produced a thermometer and took my temperature. The product can be stored at room temperature. These instruments can withstand temperatures of 180°C. They used ice packs to bring down her temperature. This plant grows well in temperatures above 55°F. Water temperatures ranged from 12 to 15°C. Yesterday the town reached its highest ever February temperature. a temperature between 35 and 37° a temperature range of 60–74°F the boiling temperature of the solvent the surface temperature of our planet |Temperatures below freezing are common here.Idioms
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BrE BrE//ˈtemprətʃə(r)//; NAmE NAmE//ˈtemprətʃər//, also NAmE//ˈtemprətʃʊr//
[countable, uncountable] (abbreviation temp) Being illto increase/decrease the amount of excitement, emotion, etc. in a situation His angry refusal to agree raised the temperature of the meeting. The government tried to lower the political temperature by agreeing to some of the demands.
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