nestle

American  

[nes-uhl] / ˈnɛs əl /

verb (used without object)

• nestles,
  present (3rd person singular)
• nestled,
  past participle,  past
• nestling
  present participle

1. to lie close and snug, like a bird in a nest; snuggle or cuddle.

2. to lie or be located in a sheltered spot; be naturally or pleasantly situated.

   a cottage nestling in a pine grove.

3. Archaic.

   1. to make or have a nest.

   2. to make one's home; settle in a home.

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verb (used with object)

• nestles,
  present (3rd person singular)
• nestled,
  past participle,  past
• nestling
  present participle

1. to settle or ensconce snugly.

   He nestled himself into the hay for a short nap.

2. to put or press confidingly or affectionately.

   She nestled her head on his shoulder.

3. to provide with or settle in a nest, as a bird.

nestle British  

/ ˈnɛsəl /

verb

1. (intr; often foll by up or down) to snuggle, settle, or cuddle closely

2. (intr) to be in a sheltered or protected position; lie snugly

3. (tr) to shelter or place snugly or partly concealed, as in a nest

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nestler
  noun
• unnestled
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• nestling
  present
• nestled
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• nestle
  simple
• nestles
  simple
• have nestled
  perfect
• has nestled
  perfect
• am nestling
  progressive
• are nestling
  progressive
• is nestling
  progressive
• have been nestling
  perfect progressive
• has been nestling
  perfect progressive

Past

• nestled
  simple
• had nestled
  perfect
• was nestling
  progressive
• were nestling
  progressive
• had been nestling
  perfect progressive

Future

• will nestle
  simple
• will have nestled
  perfect
• will be nestling
  progressive
• will have been nestling
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of nestle

before 1000; Middle English nestlen, Old English nestlian, cognate with Dutch nestelen. See nest, -le

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Explanation

To nestle into something is to get snug, comfy, and warm in it. You might nestle into your mother’s shoulder, or into a pile of blankets on the couch. People must think that birds live comfortable lives, because they describe really cozy, safe, and comfortable places as nests: places to nestle into. And it’s not just people and birds that nestle. A cottage might be nestled into the crook of a hill, or a mouse nestled into a pile of wood shavings.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

nestle nestles nestled nestling

"When the ball came to me, I just put the foot through it, saw it nestle in the top corner and the rest is history."

From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026

She uses tweezers to nestle the roasted halves on a swirl of verdant puree, then tops it off with crispy fried leaves.

From Salon ● Jun. 28, 2026

“You can nestle under a blanket and watch the storms on the mountains,” he said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 12, 2026

Creating collages is almost a compulsion, a way for Jarmusch to escape from the world and nestle into self-reflection.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 28, 2025

When the slow, romantic songs come on, the girls nestle their heads on the boys’ shoulders and my heart skips along with theirs.

From "The Queen of Water" by Laura Resau

“Always,” Ms. Korsgaard wryly notes of the Russian émigré, “order nestles side by side with ardor.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

As he nestles into its body, we see the primal need most animals, including humans, have for touch, for embrace.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 20, 2026

Sometimes that summary nestles within internal stirrings, like the goosebumps produced by the opening chords of Jane’s Addiction’s “Ocean Size” when Sydney Chandler’s Wendy realizes she can speak to the xemomorphs.

From Salon ● Dec. 14, 2025

The unsettled conditions are expected to continue through the day at the Zandvoort track, which nestles in sand dunes on the North Sea coast.

From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2024

It is an island that nestles like a suckling against the breast of Maine, but there are many of those.

From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck

The ranch is nestled in a corner of Nebraska that's home to rolling green hills under sweeping Midwestern skies, the landscape dotted with grain silos and feedlots alongside fields and fields of bovines.

From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026

The secondary bedroom is a special spot, too, as it’s nestled in a corner of the unit, offering additional sunlight and another walk-in closet.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 2, 2026

For this humble fishing village in Yemen, a tumbledown grouping of barely-there huts nestled between the water and an imposing mountain range, stands sentinel over one of the world’s most vital waterways.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 27, 2026

Their boxer, Gus, was nestled in his usual spot at the foot of their bed when a glass door shattered in their sunroom.

From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026

And if I worked hard, eventually we could move to one of those idyllic little villages nestled up alongside Lake Michigan, unsullied by the coal smoke.

From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros

One unexpected finding was that warmer extremes were linked to heavier fledging weights during the nestling stage.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 12, 2026

During the summer of 2018, when Stormy was still a nestling, “an adult male intruder showed up to the nest and with great tenacity, refused to leave,” wrote Friends of Big Bear Valley.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 3, 2026

At 72, Uncle Thing wakes up at dawn every day and weaves around his hilly farm to collect ripened durians, either dangling from trees or nestling on nets close to the ground.

From BBC ● Jan. 10, 2026

The study shows wildebeest frequently crisscross the Sand River and the areas surrounding the Ritz-Carlton, even though they avoid forested areas nestling the camp due to the risk of predators.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 20, 2025

Dad was nestling little ferny claw plants into the chinks between the rocks.

From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell

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