When the sun beats down, your skin starts to sizzle, and everything slows to a sweaty crawl—Germans call it Hitze. It’s not just about temperature; it’s about intensity, pressure, and sometimes even emotion.

The noun Hitze means heat, especially extreme or uncomfortable heat, like summer heatwaves or feverish body temperature. It’s one of the 1000 most frequently used nouns in German, and it’s a staple of summer small talk, weather forecasts, and complaints on overheated trains.

It’s a feminine noun, so we say die Hitze.

Pronunciation

Hitze is pronounced [HIT-tsuh].

• The “i” is short, like in “hit,”
• The “tz” is crisp and sharp, and
• The final “e” is softly pronounced “uh,” like a gentle puff of air.

It’s a punchy word that hits fast—very much like a sudden heatwave.

Example sentences:

• Die Hitze ist heute kaum auszuhalten.
  The heat is unbearable today.
• Wegen der Hitze blieben viele zu Hause.
  Because of the heat, many stayed home.

Nuance and usage tips

Hitze is used primarily for:

• Weather:
  eine Hitzewelle – heatwave
  große Hitze – extreme heat
  bei dieser Hitze – in this kind of heat
• Bodily temperature:
  Fieberhitze – feverish heat
  Hitzegefühl – sensation of heat
• Emotion or figurative intensity:
  in der Hitze des Gefechts – in the heat of the moment
  Hitze in der Debatte – heated debate

It’s rarely positive—Hitze usually implies oppressive or dangerous warmth, unlike the cozier or more controlled idea of “warmth” (which would be Wärme).

A rough antonym is Kälte (feminine, die Kälte)—cold, especially uncomfortable cold.

Grammatical case examples:

• Nominative: Die Hitze machte das Arbeiten fast unmöglich.
  The heat made working nearly impossible.
• Accusative: Ich kann die Hitze nicht mehr ertragen.
  I can’t bear the heat anymore.
• Dative: Mit der Hitze kamen auch die Mücken.
  With the heat came the mosquitoes.
• Genitive: Wegen der Hitze wurden alle Fenster geöffnet.
  Because of the heat, all the windows were opened.

Feminine pattern: die, die, der, der

Word variations and language tidbits

Variation Station:

• Hitzewelle – heatwave
• Hitzefrei – time off due to excessive heat (common in schools!)
• hitzebedingt – heat-related
• Hitzeschlag – heatstroke
• Hitzestau – heat buildup (in a room or body)

Fun note: In German schools, when indoor temperatures exceed a certain limit, students can be sent home early—this delightful tradition is called Hitzefrei!

📘 Duden entry: https://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/Hitze

🎥 Learn Hitze and the rest of the top 1000 German nouns in our free online video course:
https://deutschable.com/nouns/

Alternate translations note:
If you're talking about pleasant warmth or emotional warmth, the better German word might be Wärme. Meanwhile, Glut is used poetically for glowing, burning heat (like embers or inner passion), and Temperatur is the neutral word for measurable heat in degrees. Choose Hitze when the heat is intense, oppressive, or uncomfortable.

Ready for two more German words of the day? How about Ton or Versager?