hotbed
Americannoun
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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.
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a place or environment favoring rapid growth or spread, especially of something disliked or unwanted.
a hotbed of disease.
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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)
noun
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a glass-covered bed of soil, usually heated by fermenting material, used for propagating plants, forcing early vegetables, etc
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a place offering ideal conditions for the growth of an idea, activity, etc, esp one considered bad
a hotbed of insurrection
Etymology
Origin of hotbed
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It put them in a hotbed of hippiedom right as the 1960s got rolling.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
Meanwhile Myanmar's loosely governed borderlands have become a hotbed for online scam centres often operating out of fortified compounds guarded by militants.
From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026
It's regarded as a hotbed of innovation and resides in the shadow of some of the most influential Big Tech companies on the planet, including many pioneers in the AI field.
From BBC ● Jun. 23, 2026
Over those three decades, Kansas City transformed itself into a hotbed of American soccer culture.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 9, 2026
This is the Mission District, a gentrified hotbed of sushi, tapas, hip Mexican restaurants, and upscale furniture stores.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
Such ploys were unheard of two years ago, when investors were snapping up property and shift workers were "hotbedding", or rotating use of beds.
From Reuters ● Mar. 5, 2015
In some instances, this has led to "hotbedding" or sharing of a single bed by up to three workers who stagger their shifts to keep out of each other's way.
From Reuters ● Jun. 10, 2012
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
