--n.

1 fastener, fastening, spike, pin: The pieces were heldtogether by several nails.

2 fingernail, toenail, claw, talon:The detective found some fibres under the victim's nails. 3bite one's nails. worry, agonize, fret, lose sleep (over),chafe, suffer, Colloq stew (over or about): Carl is biting hisnails over the result of his cholesterol test.

4 hard or toughas nails. a tough, vigorous, hardy: After years ofmountain-climbing, Ren‚ is as hard as nails. b cold,unsentimental, unsympathetic, unfeeling: The boss, as hard asnails, doesn't care what you sacrifice to get the job done. 5hit the nail on the head. be accurate, be correct, be precise,be right, put (one's) finger on it: When you said they werefools, you really hit the nail on the head.

6 on the nail.immediately, at once, straight or right away, promptly, withoutdelay, on the spot, Colloq US on the barrel-head: He has alwayspaid his bills right on the nail.

--v.

7 attach, secure, join, pin, tack, clinch or clench

fasten, fix, focus, rivet, glue: The door to the mysteriousroom was nailed shut. His eyes were nailed to the pressuregauge.

8 See nab, above.

9 hit, strike

punch

shoot: Shenailed him with a left hook and he sank like a stone.

10 naildown. settle, secure, resolve, complete, conclude, make final

finalize: Let's celebrate: I nailed down the order for 10,000air-conditioning units.

noun countable METAL 金属  ADVANCED 

a small thin piece of metal with one pointed end and one flat end which you hit into something with a hammer, especially in order to fasten or join it to something else    钉，钉子 a three-inch nail   三英寸长的钉子 I stepped on a nail sticking out of the floorboards.   我踩到了地板上凸出来的一颗钉子。 Hammer a nail into the wall and we'll hang the mirror from it.   在墙上钉个钉子，我们要把镜子挂在上面。noun countable BODY PART 身体部位  ADVANCED 

a thin hard area that covers the upper side of the end of each finger and each toe    指甲；趾甲 Stop biting your nails!   别再咬指甲了！ nail clippers   指甲刀 a nail file   指甲锉noun countable another/the final nail in the coffin

an event which causes the failure of something that had already started to fail    导致失败的事件，致命打击，催命符 Each successive revelation of incompetence is another nail in the chairman's coffin.   接二连三地显露出不称职，是导致董事长下台的一道道催命符。 That report drove the final nail in the company's coffin.   那份报告为公司敲响了丧钟。noun countable hard/tough as nails

not feeling or showing any emotions such as sympathy, fear or worry    冷酷无情的，铁石心肠的verb FASTEN 钉牢 transitive + adverb or preposition

to fasten something with nails    用钉子钉，将…钉牢 She had nailed a small shelf to the door.   她在门上钉了一个小架子。 A notice had been nailed up on the wall.   墙上钉了一张告示。 The lid of the coffin had been nailed down.   棺材盖被钉死了。verb CATCH 抓获 transitive slang

to catch someone, especially when they are doing something wrong, or to make it clear that they are guilty   （尤指当场）抓获，逮住；证明…有罪，揭发 The police had been trying to nail those guys for months.   数月来，警方一直想抓住那帮家伙。verb nail your colours to the mast UK

to make it obvious what your opinions or plans are    明确表态；表明意图verb nail a lie UK old-fashioned informal

to prove that something really is a lie    拆穿谎言verb nailing jelly to the wall

trying to give exact details for something that it is not possible to know about exactly    试图提供无从知晓的细节；白费力气 Writing the history of this period is like nailing jelly to the wall.   试图写下这时期的历史纯属白费力气。verb   Phrasal Verbs   nail sb down informal

to make someone give you exact details or a firm decision about something    使（某人）准确说出细节；迫使（某人）作出决定 They nailed him down to a specific time and place.   他们迫使他确定了时间和地点。verb   Phrasal Verbs   [M] nail sth down DECISION    informal

If you nail down an arrangement or decision, you fix and agree to the details of it    达成（协议）；最终确定（或决定） After a five-hour meeting, we finally nailed down a deal.   开会五小时后，我们最终达成了一项协议。 UNDERSTAND    US informal

to understand something completely, or to describe something correctly    完全理解；正确描述 We haven't been able to nail down the cause of the fire yet.   我们仍未弄清火灾的起因。