HONEYCOMB

Pronunciation (US):

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does honeycomb mean? 

• HONEYCOMB (noun)
  The noun HONEYCOMB has 2 senses:

1. a structure of small hexagonal cells constructed from beeswax by bees and used to store honey and larvae

2. a framework of hexagonal cells resembling the honeycomb built by bees

  Familiarity information: HONEYCOMB used as a noun is rare.

• HONEYCOMB (verb)
  The verb HONEYCOMB has 3 senses:

1. carve a honeycomb pattern into

2. penetrate thoroughly and into every part

3. make full of cavities, like a honeycomb

  Familiarity information: HONEYCOMB used as a verb is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• HONEYCOMB (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A structure of small hexagonal cells constructed from beeswax by bees and used to store honey and larvae

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)

Hypernyms ("honeycomb" is a kind of...):

construction; structure (a thing constructed; a complex entity constructed of many parts)

Holonyms ("honeycomb" is a part of...):

beehive; hive (a structure that provides a natural habitation for bees; as in a hollow tree)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A framework of hexagonal cells resembling the honeycomb built by bees

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("honeycomb" is a kind of...):

frame; framework (a structure supporting or containing something)

Derivation:

honeycomb (make full of cavities, like a honeycomb)

honeycomb (carve a honeycomb pattern into)

• HONEYCOMB (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they honeycomb    ... he / she / it honeycombs   
Past simple: honeycombed   
Past participle: honeycombed   
-ing form: honeycombing   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Carve a honeycomb pattern into

Classified under:

Verbs of sewing, baking, painting, performing

Context example:

The cliffs were honeycombed

Hypernyms (to "honeycomb" is one way to...):

fret (carve a pattern into)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Derivation:

honeycomb (a framework of hexagonal cells resembling the honeycomb built by bees)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Penetrate thoroughly and into every part

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Context example:

the revolutionaries honeycombed the organization

Hypernyms (to "honeycomb" is one way to...):

penetrate; perforate (pass into or through, often by overcoming resistance)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Sense 3

Meaning:

Make full of cavities, like a honeycomb

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "honeycomb" is one way to...):

alter; change; vary (become different in some particular way, without permanently losing one's or its former characteristics or essence)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s something

Derivation:

honeycomb (a framework of hexagonal cells resembling the honeycomb built by bees)

 Context examples 

A honeycombed section of bone located near the base of the skull, protruding behind the outer ear.

(Mastoid Process, NCI Thesaurus)

The infiltrate has a honeycomb appearance.

(Oligodendroglial Component Present, NCI Thesaurus)

The neoplastic cells have rounded homogeneous nuclei and, on paraffin sections, a swollen, clear cytoplasm ('honeycomb' appearance).

(Oligodendroglioma, NCI Thesaurus/Adapted from WHO)

Mutation of the gene is associated with Doyne honeycomb retinal dystrophy.

(EFEMP1 wt Allele, NCI Thesaurus)

Results show that graphene, a tight, honeycomb lattice of carbon, could be an alternative to chemicals now used in mosquito repellants and protective clothing.

(Graphene shield shows promise in blocking mosquito bites, National Institutes of Health)

The researchers of Leiden University in the Netherlands focused on a type of molecule called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are flat molecules consisting of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb pattern, surrounded by hydrogen.

(“Kitchen Smoke” Molecules in Nebula Offer Clues to the Building Blocks of Life, NASA)