Meaning of nail In English

• 0 a small, thin piece of metal with one pointed end and one flat end that you hit into something with a hammer, especially in order to fasten or join it to something else:

  • a three-inch nail

  • I stepped on a nail sticking out of the floorboards.

  • Hammer a nail into the wall and we'll hang the mirror from it.

• 1 a thin, hard area that covers the upper side of the end of each finger and each toe:

  • Stop biting your nails!

  • nail clippers

  • a nail file

• 2 to fasten something with nails:

  • She had nailed a small shelf to the door.

  • A notice had been nailed up on the wall.

  • The lid of the box had been nailed down.

• 3 to catch someone, especially when they are doing something wrong, or to make it clear that they are guilty:

  • The police had been trying to nail those guys for months.

• 4 to do something successfully:

  • She nailed her audition and got the lead part in the musical.

  • You totally nailed it!

• 5 a thin piece of metal having a pointed end that is forced into wood or another substance by hitting the other end with a hammer, and is used esp. to join two pieces or to hold something in place

• 6 the hard, smooth part at the upper end of each finger and toe

• 7 to attach or fasten with a nail or nails:

  • [ M ] Workmen were nailing down the carpet.

  • He nailed the box shut.

  • We finally nailed the guys dumping garbage in the park.

• 8 to prove that someone is guilty of doing something:

  • Identifying and nailing insider dealers in the credit markets is a difficult task.

• 9 to do something successfully:

  • He nailed the interview and was offered the job right there.

• 10 at exactly the right time:

  • Some credit cards are offering loyalty bonuses to customers who pay on the nail .