nest

Study(23)

/nɛst/

noun 6verb 5name 1

Collocations

(noun.)

ADJ

ant's, bird's, wasp's, etc.

VERB + NEST

build, make

sit on

The mother bird sits on the nest to keep her eggs warm and safe.

fly, leave

After university, my older brother finally left the nest and moved to another city.

NEST + NOUN

site

The birds chose a high branch as their nest site to keep eggs safe from predators.

hole

PREP

away from a/the ~

The chicks were safe while their parents hunted away from the nest.

in/inside a/the ~

Birds lay their eggs in a nest made of twigs and grass.

on a/the ~

The mother bird stayed on the nest to keep her eggs warm and safe.

Definitions

noun

A structure built by a bird as a place to incubate eggs and rear young.

A place used by a monotreme, fish, amphibian or insect, for depositing eggs and hatching young.

A snug, comfortable, or cosy residence or job situation.

A retreat, or place of habitual resort.

A hideout for bad people to frequent or haunt; a den.

a nest of thieves

That nightclub is a nest of strange people!

verb

To build or settle into a nest.

To settle into a home.

We loved the new house and were nesting there in two days!

To successively neatly fit inside another.

I bought a set of nesting mixing bowls for my mother.

To place in, or as if in, a nest.

To place one thing neatly inside another, and both inside yet another (and so on).

There would be much more room in the attic if you had nested all the empty boxes.

name

A surname from German or Welsh.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

verb — move or arrange oneself in a comfortable and cozy position

Antonyms

Idioms & Phrases

feather one's nest

To achieve benefits, especially financial ones, by taking advantage of the opportunities with which one is presented; to amass a comfortable amount of personal wealth; especially, to do so to a degree that involves venality.

It may do him some harm, perhaps, but Dempster must have feathered his nest pretty well; he can afford to lose a little business.

love nest

A residence, especially a condominium or cabin, where a couple (particularly a newly cohabiting or married couple) can enjoy each other's company.

You two may enter the real estate process assuming that finding a little love nest is simply a matter of spotting a dream pad, placing an offer, and picking out curtains.

hurrah's nest

pandemonium (state of chaos and confusion).

A perfect hurrah's nest in our kitchen.

don't shit in your own nest

Synonym of don't shit where you eat.

it's an ill bird that fouls its own nest

A condemnation of anyone who damages their own group, reputation or interests.

They say it's an ill bird that fouls its own nest. My own feeling is that a well-behaved bird will neither foul its own nest nor another's, but that, finding it in any wise foul, i

Example Bank

a nest of thieves

Wiktionary

That nightclub is a nest of strange people!

Wiktionary

Capt. Kirby and I concluding it might be of great Service to the Eaſt-India Company to deſtroy such a Neſt of Rogues, were ready to ſail for that Purpoſe […]

Wiktionary

We loved the new house and were nesting there in two days!

Wiktionary

I bought a set of nesting mixing bowls for my mother.

Wiktionary

There would be much more room in the attic if you had nested all the empty boxes.

Wiktionary

Usage Notes

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