Easily angered or quick to lose your temper; prone to acting without thinking because of anger or passion.
Compound of 'hot' and 'headed,' emerging in Middle English. The metaphor of heat representing anger or passion is ancient, appearing in many languages, and 'hot-headed' crystallized as a fixed expression by the 1500s.
Humans have been connecting heat with anger forever—we say people 'burn up,' have a 'burning rage,' or 'see red,' and it probably goes back to how our bodies literally flush with blood when we get angry! The metaphor is so natural that most languages have something similar.
Historically gendered as feminine emotionality ('hysterical' parallels); tied to dismissal of women's justified anger as irrational. Persists in workplace bias against assertive women.
Use for anyone exhibiting uncontrolled anger; be aware it may carry unconscious gender coding when applied selectively.
["impulsive","reactive","quick-tempered"]
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