Definition

Noun: 1. A structure built by wasps or hornets to house their colony: This is the nest itself, a paper-like construction typically made from chewed wood fibers mixed with saliva. It serves as the dwelling place for a social wasp or hornet colony, containing cells for rearing young and housing the adult insects.

Usage and Examples

• The children were warned not to throw stones at the large wasp's nest under the eaves.
• A professional should be called to remove a wasp's nest from a residential area.
• Disturbing a wasp's nest can provoke the insects to attack in defense of their home.

Advanced Usage and Figurative Meaning

• "To stir up a hornet's nest" (Idiom): This common idiom uses the concept of a wasp's or hornet's nest metaphorically. It means to cause a great deal of trouble, controversy, or anger by taking an action that provokes a strong and hostile reaction from a group.
  • Example: The politician's controversial comments really stirred up a hornet's nest among voters.

Variants and Related Words

• Hornet's nest (noun): A nest built by hornets, which are a larger type of wasp. Often used interchangeably with "wasp's nest," especially in the figurative idiom.
• Wasp nest (noun): A common alternative spelling and form, often written as one word: "wasp nest."
• Nest (noun): The general term for a structure built by birds, insects, or other animals to hold eggs or young.

Synonyms

• Hornet's nest
• Wasp nest
• Vespiary (a formal, less common term specifically for a wasp's nest)

Related Idioms

• Stir up a hornet's nest: As defined in the Advanced Usage section.
• Kick the hornet's nest: A variant with the same meaning as "stir up a hornet's nest," implying a deliberate or reckless provocation.

Noun

1. habitation for wasps or hornets