What does "heap" mean?
A crowd; a throng; a multitude or great number of people.
Heap
/hiːp/ adv, name, noun, verb, slang
adv, name, noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A crowd; a throng; a multitude or great number of people.
- Grammar: heap is listed as adv, name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: mound, pile, stack, abundance.
- Useful contrasts: condemn, criticize, disparage.
- Usage evidence: Fan letters lay in a heap on the desk.
How to use "heap"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "heap" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "heap" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "heap" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "heap" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "heap" is acting as adv, name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "mound" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "heap", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A crowd; a throng; a multitude or great number of people.
"A Heap of Vassals, and Slaues: […] A People that is without Naturall Affection, […] A Nation without Morality, without Letters, Arts, or Sciences"
- 2 Acronym of high explosive armor-piercing. abbreviation, acronym, alt-of
- 3 a car that is old and unreliable wordnet
- 4 A pile or mass; a collection of things laid in a body, or thrown together so as to form an elevation.
"a heap of earth; a heap of stones"
- 5 a collection of objects laid on top of each other wordnet
Show 6 more definitions
- 6 A great number or large quantity of things.
"a vast heap, both of places of scripture and quotations"
- 7 (often followed by ‘of’) a large number or amount or extent wordnet
- 8 A data structure consisting of trees in which each node is greater than all its children.
- 9 Memory that is dynamically allocated.
"You should move these structures from the stack to the heap to avoid a potential stack overflow."
- 10 A dilapidated place or vehicle. colloquial
"My first car was an old heap."
- 11 A lot, a large amount colloquial
"Thanks a heap!"
Verb
- 1 To pile in a heap. transitive
"He heaped the laundry upon the bed and began folding."
- 2 fill to overflow wordnet
- 3 To form or round into a heap, as in measuring. transitive
"Cry a reward, to him who shall first bring News of that vanished Arabian, A full-heap’d helmet of the purest gold."
- 4 arrange in stacks wordnet
- 5 To supply in great quantity. transitive
"They heaped praise upon their newest hero."
Show 1 more definition
- 6 bestow in large quantities wordnet
Adverb
- 1 very or much; representing broken English stereotypically or comically attributed to Native Americans not-comparable, offensive, possibly
"Chuckaway too no good. Heap water, little chuckaway. Heap sticks, and still little chuckaway."
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Example
"Fan letters lay in a heap on the desk."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "heap"?
Common synonyms include: mound, pile, stack, abundance, accord, accumulate.
How do you use "heap" in a sentence?
Fan letters lay in a heap on the desk.
How do you pronounce "heap"?
Pronounced /hiːp/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English hepe, from Old English hēap, from Proto-West Germanic *haup, from Proto-Germanic *haupaz (compare Dutch hoop, German Low German Hupen, German Haufen), from Proto-Indo-European *koupos (“hill”) (compare Lithuanian kaũpas, Albanian qipi (“stack”), Avestan 𐬐𐬂𐬟𐬀 (kåfa)).
Etymology 2
English surname, from the noun heap.