IdiomTopic: money

a nest egg

/ə ˈnest ˌeɡ/NEUTRAL · C2

Meaning

money saved for the future

Examples

1Regular deposits helped us build a nest egg for retirement.
2Her aunt left a nest egg in a savings account for her.
3I keep a nest egg in a separate account for unexpected expenses.
4Have you built a nest egg in your savings account, or does every penny get spent?
5After years of saving small amounts, they had a nest egg to fall back on.

Grammar

A countable noun phrase, usually singular. Use an article or possessive; nest stays singular before egg.

Similar in meaning

save for a rainy day

More idioms about money

All 20 idioms and the topic quiz →

on a shoestringwith very little money money doesn't grow on treesmoney is limited, so you should not waste it penny-pinchingunwilling to spend money cost an arm and a legto be very expensive break the bankto cost more than you can afford tighten your beltto spend less money than before

English Idioms

400 idioms in 20 topics — with reviews that keep them from fading

Here you get a couple of questions. The app gives you 16 practice modes, native equivalents and spaced repetition that tells you when it’s time to refresh.