hive

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a structure where bees live, especially one made or kept by people

   The beekeeper opened the hive to inspect the bees.

2. 2
   noun

   a very busy place full of activity

   The market was a hive of noise and movement.

3. 3
   verb

   to gather, store, or shelter in a hive

   The beekeeper hived the new swarm before nightfall.

Multiword verbs with hive

• hive off Phrasal verb B1

  to separate part of an organization or group into an independent unit

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Hive is an Old English word of Germanic origin, probably related to Old Norse húfr, “the hull of a ship,” and Latin cupa, “tub” or “cask.” Early hives were conical and made of straw.

From Old English hyf, probably from a Germanic word for a curved container or shelter. The bee sense is literal; the figurative sense compares dense human activity to bees in a hive.

Topics

External links

• Google Images
• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary