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hothouse

 - 3 dictionary results

hot⋅house

  [hot-hous] noun, plural -hous⋅es  [-hou-ziz] , adjective
Use hothouse in a Sentence
–noun
1. an artificially heated greenhouse for the cultivation of tender plants.
–adjective
2. of, pertaining to, or noting a plant grown in a hothouse, or so fragile as to be capable of being grown only in a hothouse.
3. overprotected, artificial, or unnaturally delicate.
Origin:
1505–15; hot + house
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To hothouse
hot·house   (hŏt'hous')   
n.  

  1. A heated greenhouse for plants that require an even, relatively warm temperature.

  2. An environment conducive to vigorous growth or development; a hotbed: "With its mix of African, Latin, European, and pan-American influences, the Caribbean is truly a musical hothouse" (New Yorker).

adj.  

  1. Grown in a hothouse: a hothouse orchid.

  2. Delicate and sensitive, as if from being grown in a hothouse.

tr.v.   hot·housed, hot·hous·ing, hot·hous·es
To cultivate in a hothouse.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

hothouse 
1451, "bath house," from hot + house. In 17c. a euphemism for "brothel" (cf. massage parlor); the meaning "glass-roofed structure for raising plants" is from 1749.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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