nudge

verb

nudged; nudging

transitive verb

1
: to touch or push gently
nudged the cue ball with the tip of the cue.Paul Theroux
especially : to seek the attention of by a push of the elbow
nudged Ron in the ribs and pointed at Malfoy … J. K. Rowling
2
: to prod lightly : urge into action
… have been nudged into starting their own ventures …Janet Bamford
3
: approach
its circulation is nudging the four million markBennett Cerf

intransitive verb

: to give a nudge
She nudged and jostled through the crowd.
nudge noun
nudger noun

Examples of nudge in a Sentence

I nudged the plate closer to him. The guard nudged the prisoner forward. The dog nudged the ball with his nose. He nudged me and pointed to the deer. The salesman nudged her into testing out the car. Album sales are nudging the one million mark. The price of gold has nudged a little higher.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
While still firmly in Trump’s camp, the red county has nudged toward blue the past two elections, as turnout increased and the Democratic candidate won more of the incoming voters. Jasmine Cui, NBC News, 10 Nov. 2024 On The Golden Bachelor, the isolated production environment ended up nudging the women toward one another, too. Hannah Giorgis, The Atlantic, 31 Oct. 2024 This should make the engine more tractable throughout the rev range, and that’s not taking into consideration an optional race exhaust setup—for track use only, nudge nudge—that bumps those figures up to 126 horsepower and 73 lb-ft of torque, while shaving another 10 pounds. Michael Teo Van Runkle, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024 As for the stories she's picked up while nudging reluctant ghosts along to the afterlife, well, Winkowski has seen a thing or two. Susan Young, People.com, 30 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for nudge 

Word History

Etymology

origin unknown

First Known Use

1675, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of nudge was in 1675

Dictionary Entries Near nudge

Cite this Entry

“Nudge.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nudge. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

nudge

verb
nudged; nudging
: to touch or push gently
especially : to attract the attention of by a push of the elbow
nudge noun

More from Merriam-Webster on nudge

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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