Sl. to receive or put up with criticism (for something). The cops have been taking some heat about the Quincy killing. If you can't take the heat, stay out of the kitchen.
Endure severe censure or criticism, as in He was known for being able to take the heat during a crisis. This idiom uses heat in the sense of "intense pressure," as in if you can't stand the heat get out of the kitchen. [First half of 1900s]