nudged; nudging
1
: to touch or push gently
… nudged the cue ball with the tip of the cue.—
Paul Theroux
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
J. K. Rowling 2
: to prod lightly : urge into action
… have been nudged into starting their own ventures …—Janet Bamford
Janet Bamford3
: approach
its circulation is nudging the four million mark—Bennett Cerf
Bennett Cerf
: 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
Even nudging up your savings rate by 1% to 2% a year and directing those dollars into tax-advantaged accounts can add up over time.
—Katie Klingensmith, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
Instead of stripping your skin, the new technology does the opposite, cramming nourishers and moisturizing ingredients into microscopic nano-size droplets that nudge themselves into the nooks and crannies of your skin.
—Sophia Panych, Allure, 16 Sep. 2025
Hillary Clinton advocated in her presidential campaign for a multi-pronged solution to nudge executives to prioritize long-term growth and job stability over short-term profits.
—Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 16 Sep. 2025
Part of the point of this is to nudge developers toward using a single icon for every one of Apple's platforms that the app runs on—including iOS/iPadOS, macOS, and even watchOS.
—ArsTechnica, 15 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nudge
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Katie Klingensmith, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
Instead of stripping your skin, the new technology does the opposite, cramming nourishers and moisturizing ingredients into microscopic nano-size droplets that nudge themselves into the nooks and crannies of your skin.
—Sophia Panych, Allure, 16 Sep. 2025
Hillary Clinton advocated in her presidential campaign for a multi-pronged solution to nudge executives to prioritize long-term growth and job stability over short-term profits.
—Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 16 Sep. 2025
Part of the point of this is to nudge developers toward using a single icon for every one of Apple's platforms that the app runs on—including iOS/iPadOS, macOS, and even watchOS.
—ArsTechnica, 15 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nudge
Cite this Entry
“Nudge.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nudge. Accessed 20 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
nudge
verb
nudged; nudging
: to touch or push gently
especially
: to attract the attention of by a push of the elbow
nudge
noun
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