nail
• noun 1 a small metal spike with a broadened flat head, hammered in to join things together or to serve as a hook. 2 a horny covering on the upper surface of the tip of the finger and toe in humans and other primates. • verb 1 fasten with a nail or nails. 2 informal detect or catch (someone, especially a suspected criminal). 3 (nail down) extract a firm commitment from. 4 (nail down) identify precisely. — PHRASES a nail in the coffin an action or event likely to have a detrimental or destructive effect. on the nail (of payment) without delay. — ORIGIN Old English.
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