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nail-sick

American  
[neyl-sik] / ˈneɪlˌsɪk /
Or nailsick

adjective

Nautical.

  1. iron-sick.

Other Word Forms

  • nail sickness noun

Etymology

Origin of nail-sick

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Much smaller waves soon make a boat "nail-sick," as the phrase is.

From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 14, No. 86, December, 1864 by Various

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.