nest

American  

[nest] / nɛst /

noun

1. a pocketlike, usually more or less circular structure of twigs, grass, mud, etc., formed by a bird, often high in a tree, as a place in which to lay and incubate its eggs and rear its young; any protected place used by a bird for these purposes.

2. a place used by insects, fishes, turtles, rabbits, etc., for depositing their eggs or young.

3. a number of birds, insects, animals, etc., inhabiting one such place.

4. a snug retreat or refuge; resting place; home.

5. an assemblage of things lying or set close together, as a series of boxes or trays, that fit within each other.

   a nest of tables.

6. a place where something bad is fostered or flourishes: a robber's nest.

   a nest of vice;

   a robber's nest.

7. the occupants or frequenters of such a place.

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verb (used with object)

1. to settle or place (something) in or as if in a nest.

   to nest dishes in straw.

2. to fit or place one within another.

   to nest boxes for more compact storage.

verb (used without object)

1. to build or have a nest.

   The swallows nested under the eaves.

2. to settle in or as if in a nest.

3. to fit together or within another or one another.

   bowls that nest easily for storage.

4. to search for or collect nests.

   to go nesting.

5. Computers. to place a routine inside another routine that is at a higher hierarchical level.

nest British  

/ nɛst /

noun

1. a place or structure in which birds, fishes, insects, reptiles, mice, etc, lay eggs or give birth to young

2. a number of animals of the same species and their young occupying a common habitat

   an ants' nest

3. a place fostering something undesirable

   a nest of thievery

4. the people in such a place

   a nest of thieves

5. a cosy or secluded place

6. a set of things, usually of graduated sizes, designed to fit together

   a nest of tables

7. military a weapon emplacement

   a machine-gun nest

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verb

1. (intr) to make or inhabit a nest

2. (intr) to hunt for birds' nests

3. (tr) to place in a nest

nest Idioms  

1. see empty nest; feather one's nest; foul one's nest; stir up a hornet's nest.

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Other Word Forms

• nestable adjective
• nester noun
• nestlike adjective
• nesty adjective

Etymology

Origin of nest

First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English (cognate with Dutch, German nest; akin to Latin nīdus “nest,” Old Irish net, Welsh nyth, Sanskrit nīḍa “lair”), ultimately from unattested Indo-European nizdo- “bird's nest,” equivalent to unattested ni “down” ( nether ) + unattested zd-, variant of unattested sd-, ablaut variant of unattested sed-, verb base meaning “sit” ( sit ¹ ) + unattested -o- thematic vowel

Example Sentences

Tracy Morgan stars in Paramount+’s multicam sitcom, a spin-off of CBS’ ‘The Neighborhood,’ and plays a widowed father whose empty nest is disrupted by his adult children’s return.

From Los Angeles Times

“If you have a long-term strategy in mind, the process of building a nest egg is more important than any individual transaction.”

From MarketWatch

Lynsey says you should angle bowls downwards so they don't collect water and mix up your cutlery so spoons don't nest together.

From BBC

Curiously, I never really got angry at the North Koreans, on the assumption that if you kick the hornet’s nest and get stung, you can’t really blame the hornets.

From The Wall Street Journal

The nest egg is in place, the kids are out of the house and the daily costs of working life have disappeared.

From MarketWatch

Related Words

• burrow
• den
• refuge