Beehive Meaning: Definition, Examples, and Usage

Meaning 1：bee house (beehive)

beehive 🔊

/ˈbiː.haɪv/

A structure, often made by people, where bees live and store honey.

Beehive wooden box in garden with flying bees

bee house 🔊

➕

/ˈbiː haʊs/

A beehive is a man-made or natural structure where a colony of bees lives, raises its young, and stores honey.

📁 Category：Animal Protection 🔖 Level：Beginner

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

A compound word from 'bee' (insect) and 'hive' (container).

💡 Mnemonic

Picture a buzzing house for bees: 'bee' + 'hive' = beehive.

📖 Example

My aunt has a wooden beehive in her garden, and we love watching the bees come and go. 🔊 My aunt has a wooden beehive in her garden, and we love watching the bees come and go.

🔗 Collocations

beehive hairdo – A hairstyle shaped like a beehive, popular in the 1960s.

beehive oven – A dome-shaped oven used for baking, resembling a beehive.

beehive state – Nickname for Utah, symbolizing industry and hard work.

🔄 Synonyms

hive (n.) – A natural or artificial home for bees, often used interchangeably with beehive.

apiary (n.) – A place where multiple beehives are kept, usually by a beekeeper.

skep (n.) – A traditional straw or woven beehive, used before modern wooden boxes.

🌱 Derivatives

beehived (adj.) – Having or resembling a beehive.

beehive-like (adj.) – Similar in shape or structure to a beehive.

📖 Cultural Story

The term dates back to Old English 'bēohīf', used for man-made structures housing bees. Beehives have been central to apiculture since ancient Egypt, with straw skeps common in medieval Europe.