nail
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: enpr: nāl
ipa: /neɪl/
ipa: [neɪ̯ɫ]
rhymes: -eɪl
Forms: form: nails
form: nailing
form: nailed
form: nailed
Etymology: From Middle English naylen, from Old English næġlan.
Senses: examples: text: He nailed the placard to the post.
glosses: To fix (an object) to another object using a nail.
examples: text: He used the ax head for nailing.
synonyms: hammer
glosses: To drive a nail.
examples: text: The rivets of their arms were nail'd with gold.
ref: 1700, [John] Dryden, “The Flower and the Leaf: Or, The Lady in the Arbour. A Vision.”, in Fables Ancient and Modern; […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:
glosses: To stud or boss with nails, or as if with nails.
examples: text: I pray you now send me some dub, / A bottle or two to the needy. / I beg you won't bring it yourself, / The harman is at the Old-Bailey; / I'd rather you'd send it behalf, / For, if they twig you they'll nail you.
ref: 1765, “A Song in High Life”, in The Merry Medley, volume 1, London: W. Hoggard, page 35:
text: Military Intelligence seems to be on the spot in a quiet sort of way. I just met a G-2 slue-foot and he was a most efficient guy! They're keeping low, I think, until they nail their man.
ref: 1943 October 9, The Australian Women's Weekly, page 3, column 4:
text: Dammit, John, I'm tired of this 'Demolition Man' stuff! […] Now, I know you've been trying to nail this psycho for two years, but try remembering a little thing called official police procedure.
ref: 1993, Peter M. Lenkov, Robert Reneau, Daniel Waters, Demolition Man, spoken by Captain Healy (Steve Kahan):
text: we'll nail the sophist to it, if we can get him on that charge;
ref: 2005, Lesley, transl. Brown, Sophist, 261a, translation of original by Plato:
synonyms: word: arrest
word: collar
word: nick
word: apprehend
word: begripe
word: capture
word: fang
word: grasp
word: get
word: gripe
word: lay hold of
word: seize
word: take hold
glosses: To catch.
glosses: To expose as a sham.
examples: text: I really nailed that test.
text: The chief executive and founder of Meta used his new Threads account to say Twitter had not “nailed” its opportunity to become a mega app and that his copycat version would be “focusing on kindness”.
ref: 2023 July 6, Dan Milmo, quoting Mark Zuckerberg, “Zuckerberg uses Threads to say Twitter has missed its chance”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
synonyms: ace
fullbring
fulfill
antonyms: screw
glosses: To accomplish (a task) completely and successfully.
examples: text: Fly-half Ruaridh Jackson departed early with injury but Chris Paterson nailed a penalty from wide out left to give Scotland an early lead, and Jackson's replacement Dan Parks added three more points with a penalty which skimmed over the crossbar.
ref: 2011 October 1, Tom Fordyce, “Rugby World Cup 2011: England 16-12 Scotland”, in BBC Sport:
glosses: To hit (a target) effectively with some weapon.
examples: text: Allison Reynolds: I'm a nymphomaniac. […] The only person I told was my shrink. / Andrew Clark: And what did he do when you told him? / Allison Reynolds: He nailed me.
ref: 1985, John Hughes, The Breakfast Club (motion picture):
text: There’s a benefit gala at the Boston Pops tonight, and... well, I’m trying to nail the flautist.
ref: 1999, Neil Goldman, Garrett Donovan, “Da Boom”, in Family Guy, season 2, episode 3, spoken by Brian Griffin (Seth MacFarlane):
synonyms: word: dick
word: pound
word: rail
word: screw
word: Formal terms
word: bed
word: coit
word: coitize
word: dight
word: enjoy
word: feague
word: go in unto
word: go to bed with
word: have
word: know
word: lie by
word: lie with
word: love
word: mount
word: occupy
word: penetrate
word: season
word: seduce
word: sleep with
word: take
word: Any of Thesaurus:copulate + "with"
word: Informal and slang terms
word: ball
word: bang
word: bauf
word: beep
word: be with
word: bone
word: boff
word: boink
word: bonk
word: boom-boom
word: dick
word: diddle
word: dig out
word: do
word: doink
word: drill
word: eff
word: expletive deleted
word: feck
word: fill
word: frack
word: frak
word: frick
word: frig
word: fuck
word: get into someone's pants
word: get over on
word: get up in
word: give someone one
word: give someone the time
word: go with
word: have one's way with
word: have one's wicked way with
word: hit
word: hump
word: jape
word: jump
word: jump someone's bones
word: knob
word: knock
word: knock off
word: know someone in the biblical sense
word: lay
word: love up
word: make
word: nail
word: plough
word: plug
word: poke
word: pork
word: pound
word: prig
word: pump
word: ream
word: rock
word: roger
word: root
word: run through
word: rut
word: sard
word: schlong
word: screw
word: see to
word: service
word: shaft
word: shag
word: shelve
word: slay
word: slip it to
word: smash
word: smush
word: stallionize
word: swive
word: tap
word: tup
word: wap
glosses: Of a male, to engage in sexual intercourse with.
examples: text: That the Ordinance be not nayled, nor the munition fiered.
ref: 1598, Robert Barret, he Theorike and Practike of Modern Warres:
topics: government
military
politics
war
glosses: To spike, as a cannon.
synonyms: clinch
fix
lock down
pin down
glosses: To nail down: to make certain, or confirm.
examples: text: Loud was the laughter at this and other remarks about nailing "stooks" (silk pocket handkerchiefs), "clouts" (cotton ditto), german sausages, &c.
ref: 1866, Temple Bar, volume 16, page 507:
glosses: To steal.
Derived terms: nail it
nail Jell-O to a tree
nail Jell-O to a wall
nail one's colors to the mast
nail one's colours to the mast
nail someone to the wall
nail the hammer on the head
nail to the counter
Related terms: Wikipedia disambiguation page on both meanings of nail
Wikipedia disambiguation page on spike
Nail in the Encyclopædia Britannica (11th edition, 1911)