Dictionary.com

hot mic

or hot mike

[ hot-mahyk ]
/ ˈhɒt ˈmaɪk /

noun Informal.

a microphone that is actively recording or broadcasting, especially if it captures a comment or conversation that the speaker or speakers believed to be private (often used attributively): The techs should limit the number of hot mics to reduce acoustic feedback. The reporter was suspended after her profanity was caught on a hot mic. Their hot mic scheming confirmed the conspiracy theories.

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Origin of hot mic

1930–35; hot (in the sense “actively conducting an electric current”) + mic “microphone”

Words nearby hot mic

hotline, hotliner, hotlink, hot mess, hot metal, hot mic, hot money, hot number, hot off the press, hot on, hot pack
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020