noun
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a thin horny translucent plate covering part of the dorsal surface of the end joint of each toe
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carpentry a nail driven obliquely, as in joining one beam at right angles to another
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slang printing a parenthesis
verb
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
toenailsimple
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toenailssimple
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have toenailedperfect
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has toenailedperfect
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am toenailingprogressive
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are toenailingprogressive
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is toenailingprogressive
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have been toenailingperfect progressive
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has been toenailingperfect progressive
Past
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toenailedsimple
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had toenailedperfect
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was toenailingprogressive
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were toenailingprogressive
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had been toenailingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of toenail
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.
See Examples For:
One of the faces looked very similar, but when she looked more closely, the toenail polish didn't match.
From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026
Blood was also seeping from the Italian's shoe during a must-win fourth set, which he later explained was caused by a problematic toenail.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
Every muscle, every toenail, every metallic surface offers sharply focused detail.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 29, 2025
Artists Mario Ayala and Mia Carucci were captured together, hanging across the wall from singer Kelsey Lu, barefoot with black toenail polish on.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2025
Sohrab pressed his right foot into his left, scratching at the top of it with his big toenail.
From "Darius the Great Is Not Okay" by Adib Khorram
Then the dusty elephant with those arched and dome-like toenails that is standing on my breastbone is lighter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 21, 2026
We have all heard about Eubank's four nights in hospital and his toenails falling off.
From BBC ● Nov. 12, 2025
A Peruvian politician who had one of her advisers cut her toenails in parliament could be facing the boot.
From Barron's ● Oct. 31, 2025
But I still had filth under my toenails for weeks.
From Salon ● Aug. 8, 2024
A plain, timid girl painted her toenails kelly green.
From "Stargirl" by Jerry Spinelli
Studding, 20-foot 2 × 8s, placed 3 feet on center and toenailed to sill.
From Economy of the Round Dairy Barn by Fraser, Wilber John
He had used regular 16-penny nails toenailing these thick timbers together.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 11, 2023
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.
