hotbed

noun

hot·​bed ˈhät-ˌbed How to pronounce hotbed (audio)
Synonyms of hotbednext
1
: a bed of soil enclosed in glass, heated especially by fermenting manure, and used for forcing or for raising seedlings
2
: an environment that favors rapid growth or development
a hotbed of activity

Synonyms

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of hotbed in a Sentence

a hotbed of political unrest prerevolutionary Boston was viewed as a hotbed of treason by the British
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Republicans have repeatedly accused the school of being a hotbed of antisemitism because of protests sparked by the Israel-Hamas war. — Zachary Schermele, USA TODAY, 12 Mar. 2025 Trump views the bureau as a hotbed of disloyal conspirators. — Shane Harris, The Atlantic, 12 Feb. 2025 Diverging from the popular makeover show model of switching up subjects each episode, season three of the heartwarming series splits its time between two hotbeds of drag bans, Tennessee and Oklahoma, where the new queens take on neo-Nazis, church elders and one particularly patronizing dad. — Elaina Patton, NBC News, 27 Dec. 2024 The 1995 Oscars were a hotbed of another kind of cringe when viewed through a 2021 lens, with the slate including Toy Story writers John Lasseter (third row, tenth from right) and Joss Whedon (back row, tenth from right) and Best Supporting Actor winner Kevin Spacey (second row, eighth from left). — Zach Schonfeld, Vulture, 26 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for hotbed

Word History

First Known Use

1626, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of hotbed was in 1626

Rhymes for hotbed

See All Rhymes for hotbed

Browse Nearby Words

hot and heavy
hotbed
hot-blast stove
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Hotbed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hotbed. Accessed 29 Mar. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

Kids Definition

hotbed

noun
hot·​bed ˈhät-ˌbed How to pronounce hotbed (audio)
1
: a heated bed of soil enclosed in glass and used for growing seedlings
2
: an environment that favors rapid growth or development
a hotbed of innovation

More from Merriam-Webster on hotbed

Nglish: Translation of hotbed for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about hotbed

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Words You Always Have to Look Up

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
burrowing owl athene cunicularia tilts its head outside its burrow on marco island florida
Guess the Curious Origins of These Everyday Words Oh, that’s where that comes from…
See All