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nest

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nest

  [nest]
Use nest in a Sentence
–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)
8. to settle or place (something) in or as if in a nest: to nest dishes in straw.
9. to fit or place one within another: to nest boxes for more compact storage.
–verb (used without object)
10. to build or have a nest: The swallows nested under the eaves.
11. to settle in or as if in a nest.
12. to fit together or within another or one another: bowls that nest easily for storage.
13. to search for or collect nests: to go nesting.
14. Computers. to place a routine inside another routine that is at a higher hierarchical level.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME, OE (c. D, G nest; akin to L nīdus nest, OIr net, Welsh nyth, Skt nīḍa lair) ≪ IE *nizdo- bird's nest, equiv. to *ni down (see nether ) + *zd-, var. of *sd-, ablaut var. of *sed-, v. base meaning “sit” (see sit ) + *-o- theme vowel

Related forms:
nest⋅a⋅ble, adjective
nester, noun
nestlike, adjective
nesty, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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nest   (něst)   
n.  

    1. A container or shelter made by a bird out of twigs, grass, or other material to hold its eggs and young.

    2. A similar structure in which fish, insects, or other animals deposit eggs or keep their young.

    3. A place in which young are reared; a lair.

    4. A number of insects, birds, or other animals occupying such a place: a nest of hornets.

    5. A place or environment that fosters rapid growth or development, especially of something undesirable; a hotbed: a nest of criminal activity.

    6. Those who occupy or frequent such a place or environment.

    7. A set of objects of graduated size that can be stacked together, each fitting within the one immediately larger: a nest of tables.

    8. A cluster of similar things.

  2. A place affording snug refuge or lodging; a home.

    1. A place or environment that fosters rapid growth or development, especially of something undesirable; a hotbed: a nest of criminal activity.

    2. Those who occupy or frequent such a place or environment.

    3. A set of objects of graduated size that can be stacked together, each fitting within the one immediately larger: a nest of tables.

    4. A cluster of similar things.

    1. A set of objects of graduated size that can be stacked together, each fitting within the one immediately larger: a nest of tables.

    2. A cluster of similar things.

  5. Computer Science A set of data contained sequentially within another.

  6. A group of weapons in a prepared position: a machine-gun nest.

v.   nest·ed, nest·ing, nests

v.   intr.

  1. To build or occupy a nest.

  2. To create and settle into a warm and secure refuge.

  3. To hunt for birds' nests, especially in order to collect the eggs.

  4. To fit together in a stack.

v.   tr.

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

  2. To put snugly together or inside one another: to nest boxes.


[Middle English, from Old English; see sed- in Indo-European roots.]
Word History: Nest is an ancient word, *nizdos in Indo-European, composed of the prefix *ni- "down," plus a form of the verbal root *sed-, "to sit," followed by a suffix used to form nouns, *-os. Thus a *ni-zd-os literally means "(place where the bird) sits down." In Germanic, an old zd became st. Thus *nizdos became *nistaz, which further changed in Old English to nest. Latin also inherited the word *nizdos from Indo-European, where it eventually changed to nīdus. This word has been borrowed into English as a scientific term. The prefix *ni- survives elsewhere in English, too, in the words beneath and nether.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

nest  (n.)
O.E. nest "bird's nest, snug retreat," from P.Gmc. *nistaz (cf. M.L.G., M.Du., Ger. nest), from PIE *nizdo- (cf. Skt. nidah "resting place, nest," L. nidus "nest," O.C.S. gnezdo, O.Ir. net, Welsh nyth, Bret. nez "nest"), probably from *ni "down" + *sed- "sit." Used since M.E. in ref. to various accumulations of things (e.g. a nest of drawers, early 18c.). The verb is O.E. nistan, from P.Gmc. *nistijanan. 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" (1606).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: nest
Pronunciation: 'nest
Function: noun
: an isolated collection or clump of cells in tissue of a different structure nest ofsarcomatous cells in the liver>
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Idioms & Phrases

nest

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

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Abbreviations & Acronyms
NEST
non-surgical embryonic selective thinning
The American Heritage® Abbreviations Dictionary, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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