hotbed

noun

hot·​bed ˈhät-ˌbed 

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 of hotbed

• center
• mecca
• nest

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

Milan is now a hotbed of vintage activity. —Selene Oliva, Vogue, 26 Mar. 2026

It’s made Florida the hotbed for basketball. —Buddy Collings, The Orlando Sentinel, 25 Mar. 2026

Twenty-six of the schools who’ve produced more than Carroll are located in the California or Florida hotbeds. —Shawn McFarland, Dallas Morning News, 20 Mar. 2026

As a young woman, Stanton frequently visited her cousin Gerrit Smith, a militant abolitionist and an ally of John Brown, whose house in Peterboro, New York, was a hotbed for radical intellectuals. —Moira Donegan, New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1626, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for hotbed

• abed
• ahead
• beachhead
• bedspread
• bedstead
• behead
• blackhead
• blockhead
• bloodshed
• bowhead
• breastfed
• bridgehead

Kids Definition

hotbed

noun

hot·​bed ˈhät-ˌbed 

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