Hypertext Webster Gateway: "hotbed"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Hotbed \Hot"bed`\, n.
1. (Gardening) A bed of earth heated by fermenting manure or
other substances, and covered with glass, intended for
raising early plants, or for nourishing exotics.
2. A place which favors rapid growth or development; as, a
hotbed of sedition.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
hotbed
n 1: a situation that is ideal for rapid development (especially
of something bad); "it was a hotbed of vice"
2: a bed of earth covered with glass and heated by rotting
manure to promote the growth of plants
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