Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

nidus

[nahy-duh s]
See more synonyms for nidus on Thesaurus.com
noun, plural ni·di [nahy-dahy] /ˈnaɪ daɪ/.
  1. a nest, especially one in which insects, spiders, etc., deposit their eggs.
  2. a place or point in an organism where a germ or other organism can develop or breed.
Show More

Origin of nidus

1735–45; < Latin nīdus nest
Related formsni·dal, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for nidus

Historical Examples

  • This thin but rough covering entangles stray particles, and thus by its own decay affords a nidus for a stronger growth.

    The Dwelling House

    George Vivian Poore

  • These flies are continually prowling about and prying into every corner, to find, by stealth, a nidus for their eggs.

  • It has indeed been much more than Shelley seems to have realized, the nidus of a love pure and wholesome, if not very passionate.

  • What would there be in his system which could furnish a nidus for its reception?

  • Beyond the Kirghisians lodged a nidus of Bucharians, wild as the asses of Numidia.

British Dictionary definitions for nidus

nidus

noun plural -di (-daɪ)
  1. the nest in which insects or spiders deposit their eggs
  2. pathol a focus of infection
  3. a cavity in which plant spores develop
Show More
Derived Formsnidal, adjective

Word Origin

C18: from Latin nest
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 nidus

n.

"nest, breeding place," 1742, from Latin nidus "a nest," from Old Latin *nizdus (see nest (n.)). Figurative use by 1807. Classical plural is nidi.

Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
nidus in Medicine

nidus

(nī′dəs)
n. pl. ni•dus•es
  1. A central point or focus of bacterial growth in a living organism.
  2. A nest, especially one for the eggs of insects, spiders, pathogenic organisms, or small animals.
  3. A cavity where spores develop.
  4. A point or place at which something originates, accumulates, or develops, as the center around which calculi form.
Show More
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.