nest

empty nest syndrome

the sad feelings which parents have when their children grow up and leave home. The last of her children had recently moved out and she was suffering from empty nest syndrome.

See also: empty

feather your own nest

to dishonestly use your position at work to get a lot of money for yourself. What angers him most of all is the implication that he has been feathering his own nest.

See also: feather

fly/leave the nest

to leave your parents' home for the first time in order to live somewhere else. Once the kids have all flown the nest we might sell this house and move somewhere smaller.

See also: fly, leave

a hornet's nest

a situation or subject which causes a lot of people to become angry and upset. His remarks on the role of women have stirred up a hornet's nest amongst feminists. Animal cloning is a real hornet's nest.

a love nest

a home where two people who love each other live together, or a home where two people meet secretly in order to have sex. Apparently, they had a love nest in Soho where they used to meet at lunchtime.

See also: love

a mare's nest

a very confused situation. The law on restrictive trade is a mare's nest that scarcely anyone can comprehend.

a nest egg

an amount of money that you have saved. Regular investment of small amounts of money is an excellent way of building a nest egg.

See also: egg

---

feather your (own) nest

to make a lot of money for yourself. While the CEO feathered his own nest, his company was firing employees by the hundreds.

Usage notes: usually said about someone who takes unfair advantage of others

line your (own) pockets

See also: feather

leave the nest

to move from your parents' home and live independently. Our kids have all left the nest and the house seems empty now.

See also: leave