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On the nail

 - 6 dictionary results
Nails
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nail

  [neyl]
Use On the nail in a Sentence
–noun
1. a slender, typically rod-shaped rigid piece of metal, usually in any of numerous standard lengths from a fraction of an inch to several inches and having one end pointed and the other enlarged and flattened, for hammering into or through wood, other building materials, etc., as used in building, in fastening, or in holding separate pieces together.
2. a thin, horny plate, consisting of modified epidermis, growing on the upper side of the end of a finger or toe.
3. a former measure of length for cloth, equal to 2 1/4 in. (6.4 cm).
–verb (used with object)
4. to fasten with a nail or nails: to nail the cover on a box.
5. to enclose or confine (something) by nailing (often fol. by up): to nail up oranges in a crate.
6. to make fast or keep firmly in one place or position: Surprise nailed him to the spot.
7. to accomplish perfectly: the only gymnast to nail the dismount.
8. Informal.
a. to secure by prompt action; catch or seize: The police nailed him with the goods.
b. to catch (a person) in some difficulty, lie, etc.
c. to detect and expose (a lie, scandal, etc.).
9. Slang. to hit (a person): He nailed him on the chin with an uppercut in the first round.
10. to focus intently on an object or subject: She kept her eyes nailed on the suspicious customer.
11. Obsolete. to stud with or as if with nails.
—Verb phrase
12. nail down, to make final; settle once and for all: Signing the contract will nail down our agreement.
—Idioms
13. hit the nail on the head, to say or do exactly the right thing; be accurate or correct: Your analysis really hit the nail on the head.
14. nail in someone's or something's coffin, something that hastens the demise or failure of a person or thing: Every moment's delay is another nail in his coffin.
15. on the nail, Informal.
a. of present interest; under discussion.
b. without delay; on the spot; at once: He was offered a job on the nail.
Origin:
bef. 900; (n.) ME nail(l), nayl(l), OE nægl, c. OFris neil, OS, OHG nagal, D nagel, G Nagel, ON nagl fingernail, all < Gmc *naglaz; akin as deriv. to Lith nãgas, nagà hoof, OPruss nage foot, OCS noga leg, foot (Serbo-Croatian nòga, Czech noha, Russ nogá; prob. orig. jocular reference to the foot as a hoof), OCS nogŭtĭ, Tocharian A maku, B mekwa fingernail, claw, all < North European IE *Honogwh-; further akin to OIr ingen, Welsh ewin, Breton ivin < Celtic *ṇgwhīnā, L unguis < Italo-Celtic *Hongwhi-; Gk ónyx, s. onych-, Armenian ełungn < *Honogwh-; (v.) ME nail(l)(e), nayl(l)e(n), OE næglian, c. OS neglian, OHG negilen, ON negla < Gmc *nagl-janan; cf. Goth ganagljan

Related forms:
nailless, adjective
naillike, adjective

Synonyms:
5. fix, secure, pin, fasten.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Nails
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Family Foot Care - NYC
Minimal Invasive Foot Surgery, NYC. Immediate Appts. 5 Burroughs.
www.familyfootcarenyc.com
Slang Dictionary
nail

  1. tv.
    to arrest someone. (See also nailed.) : The cops nailed him right in his own doorway.

  2. Go to coffin nail. :
  3. tv.
    to identify someone. : The officer nailed Freddy, thanks to the description the victim provided.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Word Origin & History

nail 
O.E. negel "metal pin," nægl "fingernail (O.E. handnægl), toenail," from P.Gmc. *naglaz (cf. O.H.G. nagel, O.Fris. neil, M.Du. naghel, Ger. Nagel "fingernail, small metal spike"), from PIE base *(o)nogh "nail" (cf. Gk. onyx, L. unguis "nail, claw," O.C.S. noga "foot," Lith. naga "hoof," O.C.S. noguti "nail, claw," Lith. nagutis "fingernail," O.Ir. ingen, O.Welsh eguin "nail, claw"). The "fingernail" sense seems to be the original one. The verb is O.E. næglian, from P.Gmc. *ganaglijanan. Meaning "to catch, seize" is first recorded 1766. To bite one's nails as a sign of anxiety is attested from 1577. To hit the nail on the head "say or do just the right thing" is first recorded 1529.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: nail
Pronunciation: 'nA(&)l
Function: noun
1 : a horny sheath of thickened and condensed epithelial stratum lucidum that grows outfrom a vascular matrix of dermis and protects the upper surface of the end of each finger and toe of humans and most other primates and that is strictly homologous with the hoof or claw of othermammals from which it differs chiefly in shape and size called also nail plate
2 : a structure (as a claw) that terminates a digit and corresponds to a nail
3 : a rod (as of metal) used to fix the parts of a broken bone in normal relation nail>
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

nail (nāl)
n.

  1. A fingernail or toenail.

  2. A slender rod used in operations to fasten together the divided extremities of a broken bone.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Idioms & Phrases

on the nail

  1. Immediately, without delay, as in He paid us back on the nail. [c. 1600]

  2. Under discussion or consideration, as in The subject of the budget deficit has been on the nail for some time. [Late 1800s] The precise allusion in these expressions has been lost. Neither has any connection to hit the nail on the head (see under hit the bull's-eye).

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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