hot up
phrasal verb with hot verb uk/hɒt/ us/hɑːt/ -tt-
UK informal
（事件或情况）加剧，变得更加激烈
If an event or situation hots up, it becomes more exciting and more things start to happen.
A few days before the elections, the pace began to hot up. 选举前几天，节奏开始加快。
The competition is really hotting up now. 现在比赛已进入白热化状态。