noun Uncommon

hive

hyv

Hive (noun) means a structure, natural or man-made, where a colony of bees lives. Example: “The beekeeper checked each hive for signs of disease.”

noun

A structure, natural or man-made, where a colony of bees lives.

"The beekeeper checked each hive for signs of disease."

"A wild hive had formed inside the old oak tree."

A place full of busy activity, likened to a beehive.

"The trading floor was a hive of activity before the market opened."

A section or branch of the Windows registry.

"The technician backed up the registry hive before making changes."

verb

To gather bees into a hive, or to live together in a tightly packed group.

"The swarm hived in a hollow log behind the barn."

How to use hive

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishA beehive, or by extension any place buzzing with busy activity — also a technical term for a registry section in Windows.

Common pairings

a hive of activity bee hive registry hive

Word forms

hived past tense, hives plural, hives plural, hives singular

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The beekeeper checked each _____ for signs of disease.

Etymology

From Old English hyf, going back to a very old root meaning a curved or hollowed-out vessel — related to words like "cup" and "coupe". The computing sense (a section of the registry) was chosen later purely as a bee-themed pun.

Origin: Old English

Synonyms

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beehive apiary swarm cluster

Related words

group mass crowd stream bunch cloud galaxy mob

Rhymes for hive

five give dive live olive drive alive strive derive active arrive native

See all rhymes for hive →

Frequently asked questions

What does “hive” mean?

The word “hive” means a structure, natural or man-made, where a colony of bees lives. In plain terms, a beehive, or by extension any place buzzing with busy activity — also a technical term for a registry section in Windows.

How do you pronounce “hive”?

“Hive” is pronounced hyv (/haɪv/ in IPA).

How do you use “hive” in a sentence?

Here is “hive” used in a sentence: “The beekeeper checked each hive for signs of disease.”

What part of speech is “hive”?

Depending on how it is used, “hive” can be a noun and a verb.

Where does the word “hive” come from?

The word “hive” comes from Old English.

Is “hive” a common word?

“Hive” is an uncommon word in modern English.

How many meanings does “hive” have?

“Hive” has 4 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a structure, natural or man-made, where a colony of bees lives.

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