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Meaning of hot spot | Babel Free

Noun CEFR B2
/ˈhɒtˌspɒt/

Definitions

  1. A location which has a higher temperature or amount of radiation than surrounding areas.
  2. A part of a forest fire which is burning actively.
  3. The surface manifestation of a plume of molten material that rises from deep in a celestial body's mantle.
  4. An area of high radioactive contamination.
  5. Synonym of heiligenschein (“an optical phenomenon which creates a bright spot around the shadow of the viewer's head, when the surface on which the shadow falls has special optical characteristics”).
  6. An infected lesion in dogs or other furry mammals caused by excessive itching.
  7. A place notable for a high level of activity or danger.
    figuratively
  8. A dangerous place of violent political unrest.
    figuratively
  9. A lively and entertaining place, such as a nightclub.
    figuratively
  10. A part of an application that consumes a significant amount of execution time.
    figuratively
  11. A part of a control (“an interactive interface element”) that responds dynamically as a user moves a pointer over it (for example, a part of an image map that contains a hyperlink which can be clicked on with a cursor).
    figuratively
  12. A location in which Wi-Fi Internet access is available.
    Internet, figuratively
  13. Ellipsis of biodiversity hotspot (“a place with a significant level of biodiversity, particularly if the flora and fauna are threatened with loss of their habitat”).
    abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis, figuratively
  14. The region of a gene in which there is a higher than normal rate of mutation.
    figuratively

Equivalents

Examples

“[Y]our microwave may have an area in which more energy is concentrated. To test for a hot spot, place sliced white bread across the bottom of your microwave, so that the slices are touching, forming a solid layer.”
“While researchers can see the path that Yellowstone burned as the hot spot migrated from Oregon across Idaho and into Wyoming, discerning one eruption from another has been a chore as most volcanic deposits are scattered across vast landscapes in a chaotic jumble.”
“Great guns! messmates, but if Flint was living, this would be a hot spot for you and me. Six they were, and six are we; and bones is what they are now.”
“For instance, Toronto's Bloor Street Viaduct was, alas, a suicide hotspot – in fact, it was second only to the Golden Gate Bridge in terms of the number of bridge-related suicides.”
“I might never have learned my name or met my birth family if I hadn't ended up in the hospital in Rhode Island in 2007, after traveling to a trifecta of malaria hotspots: Mali, Egypt and Colombia.”
“It has been reported that an entertainment took place not long ago in a certain "hot spot" in New York City, and it has been charged that members of the Federal Communications Commission were present; that they got into a drunken brawl; and in the brawl some woman was hurt, her arm twisted.”

CEFR level

B2
Upper Intermediate
This word is part of the CEFR B2 vocabulary — upper intermediate level.

See also

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