beehive

noun

bee·​hive ˈbē-ˌhīv 

plural beehives

1

: hive sense 1

In the spring, two young grizzly bears, just out of a winter's sleep, … knocked over a half-dozen commercial beehives and fed on the honey and larvae within.

—Jim Robbins

2

: something resembling a hive for bees: such as

a

: a scene of crowded activity

… a beehive of growling trucks, riverboats laden with supplies, helicopters and airplanes buzzing overhead …

—National Geographic

b

: a woman's hairstyle that is conical in shape

She is about sixty-five with hair white as spun sugar, piled up in a beehive hairdo that has been out of style for twenty years.

—W. P. Kinsella

beehive adjective

Examples of beehive in a Sentence

The office was a beehive of activity.

wearing her hair in a beehive

Recent Examples on the Web

The club's management team said that professional beekeepers were called on the afternoon of the attack to inspect the area immediately around the eighth hole at Pusch Ridge for beehives or other remnants of the swarm, which weren't found. —Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 11 July 2024

Both kids and adults explored a new educational play space near downtown San Jose on Friday, turning the wheel to open up a giant solar sunflower or crawling through a set of hexagonal tubes that resembled a beehive. —Nollyanne Delacruz, The Mercury News, 22 June 2024

More than 80 percent of the menu’s ingredients are sourced from within Indonesia (including the resort’s beehives). —Chris Schalkx, Travel + Leisure, 13 June 2024

The Leon County Sheriff's EARTH Haven program, or Ecology And Reentry Training Hub Haven, has four active beehives that inmates are taking care of with hopes of harvesting honey and beeswax. —Alicia Devine, USA TODAY, 5 Apr. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing beehive

• beehive oven

Kids Definition

beehive

1 of 2 noun

bee·​hive

ˈbē-ˌhīv

1

: hive entry 1 sense 1

2

: hive entry 1 sense 2

a beehive of activity

beehive

2 of 2 adjective

: resembling a dome-shaped beehive