toenail

American  

[toh-neyl] / ˈtoʊˌneɪl /

noun

1. a nail of a toe.

2. Carpentry. a nail driven obliquely.

3. Printing Slang. a parenthesis.

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verb (used with object)

1. Carpentry. to secure with oblique nailing.

toenail British  

/ ˈtəʊˌneɪl /

noun

1. a thin horny translucent plate covering part of the dorsal surface of the end joint of each toe

2. carpentry a nail driven obliquely, as in joining one beam at right angles to another

3. slang printing a parenthesis

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verb

1. (tr) carpentry to join (beams) by driving nails obliquely

Etymology

Origin of toenail

First recorded in 1835–45; toe + nail

Example Sentences

The black-and-white image — nearly five feet wide — is so crisp that bits of the woman’s toenail polish glimmer and the hair on her thigh appears to spark.

From Los Angeles Times

“It really got in everywhere. All my toenails ended up turning black and falling off.”

From The Wall Street Journal

She was sitting on the floor barefoot, and she was painting her toenails bright red, using a tiny brush that went into a little bottle.

From Literature

She trims their toenails with a repurposed woodworking tool, styles their fur with a $600 dog blow dryer and clips their coats with $1,000 scissors.

From The Wall Street Journal

Her big toenail had turned an interesting green-black and fallen off.

From Literature