nail — EN↔ES

nail

/AmE neɪl

, BrE neɪl

noun

1 (Building) clavo m; (smaller) puntilla f

2 (Anatomy) uña f

to cut one's nails cortarse las uñas

she bites her nails se come las uñas

(before noun): nail polish (US), nail enamel (US), nail varnish (British) esmalte m de uñas

nail polish remover (US), nail enamel remover (US), nail varnish remover (British) quitaesmalte m

transitive verb

1 (fix) clavar

sheer panic nailed him to the spot se quedó clavado en el sitio de puro pánico

2 (informal)

a (apprehend) agarrar, coger (Spain); trincar (Spain) (informal)

b (obtain, secure) conseguir; hacerse con (informal)

you nailed it! ¡le acertaste!

c (expose) ‹lie› poner al descubierto

d (US) (Sport) derrotar; (in league) eliminar

Idioms

a nail in the/sb's coffin

this failure is another nail in his coffin este fracaso es otro paso camino a su derrota;

each cigarette you smoke is another nail in your coffin con cada cigarrillo que fumas te vas cavando tu propia fosa

hard as nails

to be as hard as nails ser muy duro (de corazón)

to hit the nail on the head dar en el clavo

on the nail

to pay on the nail (informal) pagar en el acto;

they paid cash on the nail pagaron a toca teja (Spain informal); pagaron taca taca (River Plate informal); pagaron chinchin (Chile, Venezuela informal); pagaron en caliente (y de repente) (Mexico informal)

Phrasal Verbs:

●

v + o + adv, v + adv + o

1 ‹lid/floorboard› clavar, asegurar con clavos

2 ‹cause› establecer con certeza; ‹agreement› concretar

3 ‹person›

see if you can nail him down on this issue a ver si logras que te dé una respuesta concreta sobre este asunto

to nail sb down to sth:

we must nail them down to a precise date tenemos que hacer que se comprometan a una fecha concreta

●

v + o + adv, v + adv + o

1 ‹crate› cerrar con clavos; ‹door/window› condenar (cerrando con tablas)

2 ‹picture/sign› clavar