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Meaning & use

hive

noun·Everyday

Last updated

UK/haɪv/
US/haɪv/

Meanings

  1. nouncountable

    A box or other container where bees are kept and make honey.

    Grammar: Plural hives; also called a beehive.

    Patterns

    • a hive of bees

    The farmer checks each hive in spring.

    Smoke calms the bees before the hive is opened.

    They placed three hives near the orchard.

  2. nouncountable

    The group of bees that live together in one hive.

    Grammar: Treated as one group.

    Patterns

    • the hive

    The whole hive swarmed at noon.

    A healthy hive can hold tens of thousands of bees.

    The hive survived the winter.

  3. nouncountablefigurative

    A busy place full of people working or moving about.

    Grammar: Often in the phrase a hive of activity.

    Patterns

    • a hive of activity

    The newsroom was a hive of activity before the election.

    The kitchen is a hive on Saturday mornings.

    The market is a hive of noise and color.

  4. nounusually pluralmedical

    A raised, itchy patch on the skin, usually plural.

    Grammar: Mostly hives: she broke out in hives.

    Patterns

    • break out in hives

    She broke out in hives after eating shellfish.

    The medicine soothed the hives.

    Stress can cause hives in some people.

Word forms

pluralhives

Common combinations

a hive of activity
The school was a hive of activity before the show.
honey from the hive
We bought honey from the hive on the hill.
hive mind
The group acted like a hive mind.
a swarm leaves the hive
A swarm left the hive in June.
break out in hives
He broke out in hives from the cold.

Synonyms and how they differ

beehive
Beehive is a more exact word for the bees' home, while hive can also mean the colony.
colony
Colony refers to the bees as a group, not the structure.
beehive-like place
This phrase is only a descriptive wording; use hive of activity instead.
buzz
Buzz describes lively noise and energy, while hive describes a place full of work.

Word family

beehive noun
a structure for keeping bees
hive off verb
to separate part of a business
hives noun
itchy raised patches on the skin
hive mind noun
collective thinking of a group

Commonly confused: hive or hide?

hive vs hide

Hide means to keep out of sight, and has a different vowel and ending from hive.

Practice

On the day of the festival, the town square was a ____ of activity.

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