nest

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. A container or shelter made by a bird out of twigs, grass, or other material to hold its eggs and young.
2. n. A similar structure in which fish, insects, or other animals deposit eggs or keep their young.
3. n. A place in which young are reared; a lair.
4. n. A number of insects, birds, or other animals occupying such a place: a nest of hornets.
5. n. A place affording snug refuge or lodging; a home.
6. n. A place or environment that fosters rapid growth or development, especially of something undesirable; a hotbed: a nest of criminal activity.
7. n. Those who occupy or frequent such a place or environment.
8. n. A set of objects of graduated size that can be stacked together, each fitting within the one immediately larger: a nest of tables.
9. n. A cluster of similar things.
10. n. Computer Science A set of data contained sequentially within another.
11. n. A group of weapons in a prepared position: a machine-gun nest.
12. v. To build or occupy a nest.
13. v. To create and settle into a warm and secure refuge.
14. v. To hunt for birds' nests, especially in order to collect the eggs.
15. v. To fit together in a stack.
16. v. To place in or as if in a nest.
17. v. To put snugly together or inside one another: to nest boxes.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. A structure formed or used by a bird for incubation and the rearing of its young. Such nesting-places are of the most diverse character, some birds making a slight nest or none at all, while others construct for their eggs receptacles requiring remarkable skill and industry. The materials used are also extremely various, as twigs, leaves, grass, moss, wool, feathers, mud or clay, etc. Some birds, for the sake of safety, excavate burrows for their nests in banks or sandy cliffs, or holes in trees. See cuts under hive-nest.
2. n. A place where the eggs of insects, turtles, etc., are laid; a place in which the young of certain small animals are reared, or a number of such animals dwelling together: as, a nest of rabbits.
3. n. A snug place of residence; habitation; abode.
4. n. Any abode, especially of evil things: as, a nest of vice.
5. n. A number of persons dwelling or consorting together or resorting to the same haunt, or the haunt itself: generally in a bad sense.
6. n. A series or set, as of boxes, baskets, trays, bowls, etc., of diminishing sizes, each fitting within the next in order.
7. n. A connected series of cog-wheels or pulleys.
8. n. In geology, an aggregated mass of any ore or mineral in an isolated state, within a rock.
9. To build or occupy a nest.
10. To relieve nature.
11. To search for nests: as, to go nesting or bird-nesting.
12. To lodge or house in or as in a nest; provide with a place of shelter or resort; build habitations for; house: often used reflexively.
13. To place (articles of graduated size belonging to a set) one within another. See nest, n., 6.
14. A Middle English form of next.

Wiktionary

1. n. A structure built by a bird as a place to incubate eggs and rear young.
2. n. A place used by another mammal, fish, amphibian or insect, for depositing eggs and hatching young.
3. n. A snug, comfortable, or cozy residence or job situation.
4. n. A retreat, or place of habitual resort.
5. n. A hideout for bad people to frequent or haunt; a den.
6. n. A home that a child or young adult shares with a parent, guardian, or a person acting in the capacity of a parent or guardian. A parental home.
7. n. card games A fixed amount of cards in some bidding games awarded to the highest bidder allowing him to exchange any or all with cards in his hand.
8. n. military A fortified position for a weapon, e.g. a machine gun nest.
9. n. computing A structure consisting of nested structures, such as nested loops or nested subroutine calls.
10. n. Pasta formed into a round shape.
11. v. intransitive, of animals To build or settle into a nest.
12. v. intransitive To settle into a home.
13. v. intransitive To successively neatly fit inside another.
14. v. transitive To place in, or as if in, a nest.
15. v. transitive To place one thing neatly inside another, and both inside yet another (and so on).
16. v. intransitive To hunt for birds' nests or their contents (usually "go nesting").

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. The bed or receptacle prepared by a fowl for holding her eggs and for hatching and rearing her young.
2. n. The place in which the eggs of other animals, as insects, turtles, etc., are laid and hatched; a snug place in which young animals are reared.
3. n. A snug, comfortable, or cozy residence or situation; a retreat, or place of habitual resort; hence, those who occupy a nest, frequent a haunt, or are associated in the same pursuit
4. n. (Geol.) An aggregated mass of any ore or mineral, in an isolated state, within a rock.
5. n. A collection of boxes, cases, or the like, of graduated size, each put within the one next larger.
6. n. (Mech.) A compact group of pulleys, gears, springs, etc., working together or collectively.
7. v. To build and occupy a nest.
8. v. To put into a nest; to form a nest for.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. a structure in which animals lay eggs or give birth to their young
2. v. fit together or fit inside
3. v. gather nests
4. n. a gang of people (criminals or spies or terrorists) assembled in one locality
5. n. furniture pieces made to fit close together
6. n. a cosy or secluded retreat
7. v. move or arrange oneself in a comfortable and cozy position
8. v. inhabit a nest, usually after building
9. n. a kind of gun emplacement