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definitions

nest

[nest]
See more synonyms for nest on Thesaurus.com
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 nest of vice; a robber's nest.
  7. the occupants or frequenters of such a place.
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.

Origin of nest

before 900; Middle English, Old English (cognate with Dutch, German nest; akin to Latin nīdus nest, Old Irish net, Welsh nyth, Sanskrit nīḍa lair) ≪ Indo-European *nizdo- bird's nest, equivalent to *ni down (see nether) + *zd-, variant of *sd-, ablaut variant of *sed-, v. base meaning “sit” (see sit1) + *-o- theme vowel
Related formsnest·a·ble, adjectivenest·er, nounnest·like, adjectivenest·y, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for nest

burrow, refuge, den, lair, aerie, roost, haunt, hideaway

Examples from the Web for nest

Contemporary Examples of nest

Historical Examples of nest

British Dictionary definitions for nest

nest

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 habitatan ants' nest
  3. a place fostering something undesirablea nest of thievery
  4. the people in such a placea nest of thieves
  5. a cosy or secluded place
  6. a set of things, usually of graduated sizes, designed to fit togethera nest of tables
  7. military a weapon emplacementa machine-gun nest
verb
  1. (intr) to make or inhabit a nest
  2. (intr) to hunt for birds' nests
  3. (tr) to place in a nest
Derived Formsnester, nounnestlike, adjective

Word Origin for nest

Old English; related to Latin nīdus (nest) and to beneath, sit
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for nest
n.

Old English nest "bird's nest, snug retreat," also "young bird, brood," from Proto-Germanic *nistaz (cf. Middle Low German, Middle Dutch nest, German Nest), from PIE *nizdo- (cf. Sanskrit nidah "resting place, nest," Latin nidus "nest," Old Church Slavonic gnezdo, Old Irish net, Welsh nyth, Breton nez "nest"), probably from *ni "down" + *sed- (1) "to sit" (see sedentary).

Used since Middle English in reference to various accumulations of things (e.g. a nest of drawers, early 18c.). Nest egg "retirement savings" is from 1700, originally "a real or artificial egg left in a nest to induce the hen to go on laying there" (c.1600).

v.

Old English nistan "to build nests," from Proto-Germanic *nistijanan, from the source of nest (n.). The modern verb is perhaps a new formation in Middle English from the noun. Related: Nested; nesting.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with nest

nest

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

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.