honeycomb
/ˈhʌniˌkoʊm/ noun B2- A substance made by bees (clade Anthophila) primarily from beeswax which has hexagonal cells to hold their larvae, and for storing pollen and honey to feed the larvae and themselves when other food is scarce; it is also eaten by humans as part of comb-honey; (countable) a single sheet made up of two layers of this substance.
- Something resembling honeycomb (noun sense 1) in having numerous cells or small holes. · The wood porch was a honeycomb of termite tunnels before we replaced it.
- A space-filling packing of polytopes in three- or higher-dimensional space.
- The texture of the surface of a solar cell, intended to increase its surface area and capture more sunlight.
- Material manufactured with small hollow cells, sometimes sandwiched between two flat sheets, which is used to make light, stiff structural components.
- Something resembling honeycomb in sweetness; hence, something desirable or pleasant.
Plural honeycombs
From the library
Having tasted the honeycomb, he threw down his axe, and looking on the tree as sacred, took great care of it.
From the palace you could see the rows and rows of roofless houses that made up the city looking like empty honeycombs filled with blackness; the shapeless block of stone that had been an idol in the square where four roads met; the pits and dimples at street corners where the public wells once stood, and the shattered domes of temples with wild figs sprouting on their sides.
If a fictional bear makes a joke about a honeycomb and combing his fur, a literal Spanish translation will sound completely absurd.
Other matches
Learn honeycomb in real texts
With a free account, hover any word in the library for its meaning, hear it read aloud, save words for review timed to your memory, and see how much of each book you already know.