boiling point

noun

1

: the temperature at which a liquid boils

2

a

: the point at which a person becomes uncontrollably angry

b

: the point of crisis : head sense 17b

matters had reached the boiling point

Synonyms

• breaking point
• clutch
• conjuncture
• crisis
• crossroad(s)
• crunch
• crunch time
• Dunkirk
• emergency
• exigency
• extremity
• flash point
• head
• juncture
• tinderbox
• zero hour

Examples of boiling point in a Sentence

The boiling point of water is 212° Fahrenheit or 100° Celsius.

when the situation reached the boiling point, the President had no choice but to order out the National Guard

Recent Examples on the Web

Everyone’s various infidelities and fights reach boiling point, with Karl and Orson coming to blows at the Christmas block party, Dylan discovering her mother has been lying to her, and Lynette attempting to apologize to Gaby and Carlos for suing them. —Marianne Eloise, Vulture, 11 Dec. 2024

The bill comes as resentment toward the health care industry reached a boiling point after the killing of UnitedHealthcare's Brian Thompson in New York City last Wednesday. —Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2024

All of the pressure reached a boiling point in October 2023, when a pedestrian was hit by a vehicle and flung underneath a nearby Cruise vehicle. —Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 11 Dec. 2024

The dispute reached a boiling point when WBD issued a press release announcing that Max had officially greenlit a new Harry Potter series, which is expected to debut in 2026. —Winston Cho, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1741, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

boiling point

noun

1

: the temperature at which a liquid boils

2

: the point at which a person becomes uncontrollably angry

3

: the point of crisis

Medical Definition

boiling point

noun

boil·​ing point ˈbȯi-liŋ-ˌpȯint 

: the temperature at which a liquid boils