nail — OAT · Shobdo

nail

noun

pin, spike, tack, rivet;

hobnail;

British panel pin, tin tack;

technical brad, sprig, clout nail, sparable.

fingernail, thumbnail, toenail;

claw, talon, nipper, pincer;

technical unguis, chela.

□ hard as nails

callous, hard-hearted, heartless, with a heart of stone, stony, stony-hearted, unfeeling, unsympathetic, uncaring, insensitive, unsentimental, cold-hearted, cold, hard-bitten, tough, unforgiving, lacking compassion, uncharitable, inflexible, unbending, implacable;

North American, informal badass.

□ on the nail

immediately, at once, without delay, straight away, right away, promptly, on the spot, directly, now, this minute;

North American on the barrelhead.

verb

1 a large blackboard was nailed to the wall:

fasten, attach, fix, affix, secure, tack, hammer, pin, post.

2 informal a device which could help police to nail their suspects:

catch, capture, apprehend, arrest, take into custody, seize, take in, bring in;

informal collar, nab, cop, run in, pull in, pick up, bust;

British, informal pinch, nick, nobble.

3 the paper's exclusive pictures had nailed the lie:

expose, reveal, uncover, unmask, bring to light, lay bare, smoke something out, unearth, detect, identify;

archaic discover.

word links	nail
ungual relating to the nails