heads-up

[ hedz-uhp ]
/ ˈhɛdzˌʌp /

adjective

quick to grasp a situation and take advantage of opportunities; alert; resourceful.

noun

a warning in advance: sending a heads-up to the Pentagon about possible attacks.

Origin of heads-up

First recorded in 1945–50

Words nearby heads-up

headroom, heads, heads or tails, heads up, heads will roll, heads-up, heads-up display, headsail, headsaw, headscarf, headset

Definition for heads-up (2 of 3)

Origin of head

before 900; Middle English he(v)ed, Old English hēafod; cognate with Old High German houbit, Gothic haubith; akin to Old English hafud- (in hafudland headland), Old Norse hǫfuth, Latin caput (see capital1)

ANTONYMS FOR head

1 foot.
39 subordinate.

OTHER WORDS FROM head

head·like, adjective mul·ti·head, noun

Definition for heads-up (3 of 3)

heads up

interjection

(used to call attention to an impending danger or the need for immediate alertness).

Origin of heads up

First recorded in 1940–45

VOCAB BUILDER

What does heads-up mean?

As an exclamation, Heads up! is used to call attention to danger or another important matter.

As a basic noun, a heads-up is an advance notice or warning.

Where does heads-up come from?

In late 18th-century militaries, Heads up! encouraged soldiers to keep their heads held high in tough times—chin up guys.

Since then, heads up has taken on a number of meanings, all based on the idea that one is paying attention when their head is … up.

In the 1910s, heads-up described someone as alert or skillful (e.g., a heads-up police officer). Also around this time Heads up! became an exclamation to warn someone of danger ahead or overhead.

In the 1930s, the phrase heads up also signaled a frank statement, a kind of tbh of its day: I don’t like chopped liver, heads up.

Then, we get to the 1970s, and heads-up came into use in its most common and familiar contemporary meaning: an “advance warning,” “notice,” or “reminder.” For instance, Give me a heads-up when you’re off the plane or Heads up: This will be on the exam. By the 2000s, this sense extended to “facts” or “information” in general: What’s the heads-up on the new project?

As a nod of the head can be used to acknowledge someone you’re walking by, a heads-up occasionally took on the sense of a “greeting” in the 1990s.

Heads up also is the name of two popular games. Since the 1950s, apparently, schoolchildren have been playing Heads Up Seven Up. In the game, kids put their heads down on their desk as seven chosen classmates walk around the room tapping as many students. When done, the moderator shouts Heads up! and the tapped have to guess their tappers.

Based on a game she played on her talk show, Ellen Degeneres developed an app-based game called Heads Up! Here, players select a trivia category (animals, Disney movies, etc.) and divide into teams. One team player places a smartphone or tablet on their head displaying a term they have to guess based on clues their teammates give. The aim is to guess as many you can within a given time limit.

How is heads-up used in real life?

In everyday speech and writing, people may issue a heads up as a warning: Heads up, you’re about to bump into that pole. It’s common to say heads up before tossing something (keys, an apple) so you have the person’s attention.

Heads up very widely gets used in speech and writing for any bit of clickbait “news” or as a friendly “notice.”

Heads up! still sees use in its early “hold your head high and proud” sense too.

https://twitter.com/sohsraiders/status/1001626941823172608

More examples of heads-up:

“In case you don’t already have an alert on your calendar, heads up: Father’s Day 2018 is quickly approaching. This year, it will fall on Sunday, Jun. 17. So don’t worry, you have plenty of time to put a little thought into dad’s present.”
—Brittany Bennett, Bustle, May, 2018

Note

This content is not meant to be a formal definition of this term. Rather, it is an informal summary that seeks to provide supplemental information and context important to know or keep in mind about the term’s history, meaning, and usage.

Example sentences from the Web for heads-up

British Dictionary definitions for heads-up (1 of 3)

Head
/ (hɛd) /

noun

Edith. 1907–81, US dress designer: won many Oscars for her Hollywood film costume designs

British Dictionary definitions for heads-up (2 of 3)

heads up

noun

mainly US and Canadian a tip-off or small amount of information given in advance

British Dictionary definitions for heads-up (3 of 3)

head
/ (hɛd) /

noun

verb

See also head for, head off, heads

Derived forms of head

headlike, adjective

Word Origin for head

Old English hēafod; related to Old Norse haufuth, Old Frisian hāved, Old Saxon hōbid, Old High German houbit

Medical definitions for heads-up

head
[ hĕd ]

n.

The uppermost or forwardmost part of the human body, containing the brain and the eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and jaws.
The analogous part of various vertebrate and invertebrate animals.
The pus-containing tip of an abscess, boil, or pimple.
The rounded proximal end of a long bone.
The end of a muscle that is attached to the less movable part of the skeleton.

Idioms and Phrases with heads-up (1 of 2)

head

Idioms and Phrases with heads-up (2 of 2)

heads up

A warning to watch out for potential danger, as in Heads up, that tree is coming down now! The expression is generally in the form of an interjection. [c. 1940]