Dictionary:

hotbed

  (hŏt'bĕd')

1. An environment conducive to vigorous growth or development, especially of something undesirable: a hotbed of intrigue.
2. A glass-covered bed of soil heated with fermenting manure or by electricity, used for the germination of seeds or for protecting tender plants.

A small low enclosure heated by fermented manure or electric cables and usually covered with glass; used for forcing bedding plants and vegetables to grow out of season or for protecting tender exotics.

A glass-enclosed bed of soil heated with fermenting manure or—more likely these days—an electric cable, used to germinate seeds or to protect seedlings or tender plants.

Hotbed can mean:

• Hotbed (economics) - A hotbed is an environment conducive to rapid growth or development. Colloquially, it is often heard in the phrase, "a hotbed of activity." The term has varying, specific meanings in diverse fields, such as economics and biology.

• Hotbed (gardening) - In biology, a hotbed is a pile of decaying organic matter warmer than its surrounding due to the heat given off by the metabolism of the microorganisms in the decomposing pile. Hotbeds are used by humans for composting and keeping delicate plants warm during the winter. Some egg-laying animals use hotbeds to incubate their eggs.

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - drivbænk, mistbænk, drivhus

Nederlands (Dutch)
broeinest, broeikas

Français (French)
n. - foyer

Deutsch (German)
n. - Brutstätte, Frühbeet

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - θερμοκήπιο, σέρα, (φυτολ.) θερμοστρωμνή (κν. τζάκι), (μτφ.) περιβάλλον που ευνοεί την ανάπτυξη ανεπιθύμητων καταστάσεων

Italiano (Italian)
focolaio

Português (Portuguese)
n. - canteiro (m) para mudas (Agr.), lugar (m) propício a doenças e vícios

Русский (Russian)
парник

Español (Spanish)
n. - semillero, estercolero

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - drivbänk, härd (bildl.)

中文（简体） (Chinese (Simplified))
温床

中文（繁體） (Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 溫床

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 온실, 소굴

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 温床

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) المستنبت, طبقه من التراب مطوقه بالزجاج ومزودة بالسماد لانتاج نباتات في غير مواسمها, موضع أو محيط ملائم لنمو شئ أو تطوره بسرعه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮מקום גידול, חממה‬

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