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

• 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

At that time Mexico City was a hotbed of radical thinking and artistic experimentation. —Grace Edquist, Vogue, 23 Oct. 2025

Doechii is fearless in her weirdness Doechii, born Jaylah Ji'mya Hickmon, hails from Tampa, not exactly a hotbed of hip-hop exports. —Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 22 Oct. 2025

Canal Street in lower Manhattan has long been a hotbed — and destination — for shoppers in search of knockoff designer handbags, belts, sunglasses and watches. —Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 22 Oct. 2025

Florida — specifically Miami — is the hotbed. —Noah White, Miami Herald, 19 Oct. 2025

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