Hotbed (Noun)
Meaning 1
A situation that is ideal for rapid development (especially of something bad); "it was a hotbed of vice".
Classification
Nouns denoting natural processes.
Examples
- The city's waterfront was a hotbed of organized crime and corruption in the 1940s.
- The student union meeting turned into a hotbed of controversy after the announcement of the tuition increase.
- The desert region became a hotbed of extremist activity after the failed coup.
- This once-thriving industrial town had become a hotbed of poverty and unemployment.
- The university's computer science department was a hotbed of innovation, producing numerous startup companies and entrepreneurs.
Hypernyms
Meaning 2
A bed of earth covered with glass and heated by rotting manure to promote the growth of plants.
Classification
Nouns denoting man-made objects.
Examples
- The gardener carefully prepared the hotbed for the tender seedlings, covering it with a layer of straw to retain the heat.
- The old nursery was famous for its hotbeds, where rare orchids were coaxed into bloom.
- She filled the hotbed with a mixture of soil and compost, and waited for the first shoots to emerge.
- In the 18th century, greenhouses often featured hotbeds for growing exotic fruits and flowers.
- To extend the growing season, the farmer built a hotbed against a south-facing wall, where he started seedlings weeks before the last frost.