nail
n. countablen. the hard, flat part that covers the top of your finger or toe. It can also mean a thin piece of metal with a sharp point used to join wood together.
n. the thin, horny plate covering the dorsal surface of the distal phalanx of each finger and toe; alternatively, a slender metal fastener driven into wood by impact.
She painted her nails a bright shade of red.
The carpenter used a hammer to drive a long nail into the wooden frame to secure the joint.
While the biological function of the nail is to protect the sensitive fingertip, its structural integrity can be compromised by nutritional deficiencies or repetitive physical trauma.
From Middle English nail, nayl, Old English næġl, from Proto-West Germanic nagl, from Proto-Germanic naglaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₃nogʰ- (“nail”). Cognates Compare North Frisian Nail (“nail”), Saterland Frisian Nail (“nail”), West Frisian neil, Low German Nagel, Dutch nagel, German Nagel, Danish negl, Swedish nagel, Finnish naula (“nail”), Estonian nael (“nail”), (compare Irish ionga, Latin unguis, Albanian nyell (“ankle, hard part of a limb”), Lithuanian nagas, Russian нога́ (nogá, “foot, leg”), но́готь (nógotʹ, “nail”), Ancient Greek ὄνυξ (ónux), Persian ناخن (nâxon), Sanskrit नख (nakhá).
From Middle English naylen, from Old English næġlan.
Commonly used in the plural when referring to anatomy; the metal fastener sense often takes 'into' to describe the target material.
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another nail in someone's coffin
An event that increases the likelihood of or causes further failure.
- 02
final nail in the coffin
Something that is ultimately responsible for a previously prospective demise or failure.
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hit the nail on the head
To identify something exactly; to arrive at exactly the right answer.