hotbed
[ hot-bed ]
/ ˈhɒtˌbɛd /
noun
a bottomless, boxlike, usually glass-covered structure and the bed of earth it covers, heated typically by fermenting manure or electrical cables, for growing plants out of season.
a place or environment favoring rapid growth or spread, especially of something disliked or unwanted: a hotbed of disease.
Slang. a bed shared by two or more persons in shifts, each sleeping in it for or at a designated time and then vacating it for the next occupant.
verb (used without object), hot·bed·ded, hot·bed·ding.
Slang. to share a bed in shifts, so that it is always occupied.
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Words nearby hotbed
Definition for hotbed (2 of 2)
hot bed
noun Metalworking.
an area having rails or rolls on which rolled pieces are laid to cool.
Origin of hot bed
First recorded in 1620–30
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Example sentences from the Web for hotbed
British Dictionary definitions for hotbed
hotbed
/ (ˈhɒtˌbɛd) /
noun
a glass-covered bed of soil, usually heated by fermenting material, used for propagating plants, forcing early vegetables, etc
a place offering ideal conditions for the growth of an idea, activity, etc, esp one considered bada hotbed of insurrection
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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