A hothouse is a heated building, usually made of glass, in which plants and flowers can be grown.
2. countable noun [oft NOUN noun]
You can refer to a situation or place as a hothouse when there is intense activity, especially intellectual or emotional activity.
The vast crowds make Rome a frantic hothouse at times.
...the reputation of the College as a hothouse of novel ideas.
More Synonyms of hothouse
hothouse in British English
(ˈhɒtˌhaʊs)
noun
1.
a.
a greenhouse in which the temperature is maintained at a fixed level above that of the surroundings
b.
(as modifier)
a hothouse plant
2.
a.
an environment that encourages rapid development
b.
(as modifier)
a hot-house atmosphere
3.
an environment where there is great pressure
showjumping is a tough, hothouse world
4. (modifier) informal, sometimes derogatory
sensitive or delicate
a hothouse temperament
hothouse in American English
(ˈhɑtˌhaʊs)
noun
1.
a building made mainly of glass, artificially heated for growing plants; greenhouse
adjective
2.
grown in a hothouse
3.
needing very careful treatment; delicate
Examples of 'hothouse' in a sentence
hothouse
It was a hothouse artistic environment to grow up in.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
In this hothouse atmosphere, romances can quickly grow very intense.
The Sun (2008)
In a hothouse atmosphere, that will not be easy.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
For the next six years he was taught in an academic hothouse under intense pressure, where some pupils thrived and others suffered.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
But there is a danger also: a person reared in such a hothouse environment may wilt once he or she steps into the broader society.
Christianity Today (2000)
In a plush suite, its air heavy with the scent of hothouse flowers, record company bosses are mingling with agents and photographers.
The Sun (2014)
That is an awful lot of togetherness and it could be argued that the prolonged exposure to a hothouse atmosphere causes bodies, and especially minds, to wilt.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
(noun)
Definition
a greenhouse in which the temperature is maintained at a fixed level
Wilted plants thrive when well tended in a hothouse.
Synonyms
greenhouse
Take some cuttings and over-winter them in the greenhouse.
conservatory
The plant is susceptible to frost but can be placed in a conservatory or greenhouse.
glasshouse
This kind of plant needs to be grown in a glasshouse.
orangery
(adjective)
Synonyms
delicate
Although the material looks tough, it is very delicate.
sensitive
gentle cosmetics for sensitive skin
exotic
fragile
Coffee was served to them in cups of fragile china.
frail
The frail craft rocked as he clambered in.
pampered
dainty
a pair of the daintiest little kid slippers
coddled
overprotected
Additional synonyms
in the sense of conservatory
Definition
a greenhouse attached to a house
The plant is susceptible to frost but can be placed in a conservatory or greenhouse.
Synonyms
greenhouse,
hothouse,
glasshouse
in the sense of dainty
Definition
delicate, pretty, or elegant
a pair of the daintiest little kid slippers
Synonyms
delicate,
pretty,
charming,
fine,
slight,
slim,
elegant,
trim,
neat,
refined,
exquisite,
graceful,
petite,
dinky (British, informal)
in the sense of fragile
Definition
able to be broken or damaged easily
Coffee was served to them in cups of fragile china.