nester

noun

nest·​er ˈne-stər How to pronounce nester (audio)
1
Western US : a homesteader or squatter who takes up land on open range for a farm
2
: one that nests
Wood ducks are cavity nesters, setting up shop in holes high in trees.Howard Youth

Examples of nester in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The birds are late nesters and wait until mid-summer to start settling down for breeding. Karl Schneider, The Indianapolis Star, 4 Mar. 2024 Cedar waxwings are present in flocks of up to many dozens of individuals in winter and spring and are regular nesters in the higher elevations of our mountains. Taylor Piephoff, Charlotte Observer, 31 Jan. 2024 In the spring, areas around the younger trees drew ground nesters like bobolinks — songbirds that migrate to and from South America — killdeer and woodcocks, who availed themselves of the open spaces to perform their courtship flights and rear their young. Cara Buckley, New York Times, 13 Dec. 2023 The tent does not come with a footprint, but even without that, the tent flooring stands up to dogs, even those that are aggressive nesters. Meg Carney, Field & Stream, 27 Sep. 2023 The Kemp's ridley—the rarest species of sea turtle in the world—is the state's primary nester but there are also occasionally Loggerheads. Ariana Garcia, Chron, 21 Apr. 2023 The room was rarely used by the family, a pair of New York City empty-nesters with three grown children who frequently visited, and had become overcrowded with furniture. Adrienne Gaffney, WSJ, 22 Mar. 2023 The revelation that the bee is a ground nester will help the team make recommendations to local land managers, as pine scrub ecosystems evolved under a rhythm of fire and undergo prescribed burns today. Natalie Van Hoose, sun-sentinel.com, 7 June 2021 The suspect was first identified as a person of interest in Newton’s murder not by detectives but by Clark Williams, a stay-at-home dad turned empty-nester. Seyward Darby, Longreads, 14 Feb. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'nester.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1850, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of nester was in 1850

Dictionary Entries Near nester

Cite this Entry

“Nester.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nester. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

nester

noun
nest·​er ˈnes-tər How to pronounce nester (audio)
1
: one that nests
2
West : a person who settles on open range in order to farm

More from Merriam-Webster on nester

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