nudge

verb

ˈnəj 

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 mark

—Bennett Cerf

intransitive verb

: to give a nudge

She nudged and jostled through the crowd.

nudge noun

nudger noun

Synonyms

• brush
• graze
• kiss
• shave
• skim

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

Perhaps our bee friend will nudge it out of the way. —New York Times Games, New York Times, 23 Feb. 2025

Lindholm nudged him back, just before Morgan Geekie ripped the tying one-timer into the net with 1:11 remaining in regulation. —Fluto Shinzawa, The Athletic, 23 Feb. 2025

An administration-wide directive could nudge them to affirm more homebuilding where appropriate rather than reflexively blocking it. —Salim Furth, The Mercury News, 22 Feb. 2025

Kristin also is nudged to consider her past choices. —David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

origin unknown

First Known Use

1675, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for nudge

• budge
• drudge
• frage
• fudge
• grudge
• judge
• mudge
• rudge
• sludge
• smudge
• trudge
• adjudge

Kids Definition

nudge

verb

ˈnəj 

nudged; nudging

: to touch or push gently

especially : to attract the attention of by a push of the elbow

nudge noun