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.
Taken together across the economy, the smaller pool of job seekers roughly has offset the softer demand, nudging down the unemployment rate from 4.2% to a historically low 4.1% in June. Paul Davidson, USA Today, 29 July 2025 Game Design Choices Carry Real Compliance Risk Regulators have also turned their attention to the ways games nudge users into spending. Aj Dhaliwal, Forbes.com, 23 July 2025 Mead exerted a quiet control over his two partners, nudging McKim forward and trying to restrain White from spinning out of control. Henry Wiencek july 22, Literary Hub, 22 July 2025 Overall apparel prices nudged up just 0.4% in June after declining in May and April. Alicia Wallace, CNN Money, 15 July 2025 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

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Cite this Entry

“Nudge.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nudge. Accessed 5 Aug. 2025.

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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