# nest

> English word · Noun · IPA /nɛst/ · frequency rank #6,384

## Definitions
1. A structure built by a bird as a place to incubate eggs and rear young.
2. A place used by a monotreme, fish, amphibian or insect, for depositing eggs and hatching young.
3. A snug, comfortable, or cosy residence or job situation.
4. A retreat, or place of habitual resort.
5. A hideout for bad people to frequent or haunt; a den.
6. A home that a child or young adult shares with a parent or guardian.
7. A fixed number of cards in some bidding games awarded to the highest bidder allowing him to exchange any or all with cards in his hand.
8. A fortified position for a weapon.
9. A structure consisting of nested structures, such as nested loops or nested subroutine calls.
10. A circular bed of pasta, rice, etc. to be topped or filled with other foods.
11. An aggregated mass of any ore or mineral, in an isolated state, within a rock.
12. A collection of boxes, cases, or the like, of graduated size, each put within the one next larger.
13. A compact group of pulleys, gears, springs, etc., working together or collectively.
14. The pubic hair near a vulva or a vulva itself.

## Etymology
From Middle English nest, nist, nyst, from Old English nest, from Proto-West Germanic *nest, from Proto-Germanic *nestą, from Proto-Indo-European *nisdós (“nest”), literally "where [the bird] sits down", a compound of *ni (“down”) (whence also English nether) + the zero-grade of the root *sed- (“to sit”) (whence also English sit).

## Easily confused with
- **NT** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-nt)
- **not** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-not)
- **new** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-new)
- **net** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-net)
- **nut** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-nut)
- **NHS** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-nhs)
- **NSA** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-nsa)
- **NSW** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-nsw)
- **nos** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-nos)
- **NYT** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-nyt)
- **nit** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-nit)
- **NSF** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-nsf)
- **NSC** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-nsc)
- **nis** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-nis)
- **NWS** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-nws)
- **ney** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-ney)
- **NEX** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-nex)
- **NFS** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-nfs)
- **neu** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-neu)
- **NPT** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/nest-vs-npt)

## Common misspellings (5)
`enst`, `nesst`, `nestt`, `nnest`, `nset`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/nest