nayl

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Middle English

Alternative forms

næȝl, næil (early)
neil, nail, nayle, nayll, neyl, naylle

Etymology

Inherited from Old English næġl.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /næi̯l/
Rhymes: -æi̯l

Noun

nayl (plural nayles)

A nail (fingernail or toenail).
- a. 1382, John Wycliffe, “Deuteronomy 21:12”, in Wycliffe's Bible:
  Thou schalt brynge hir in to thin hows; which womman schal schaue the heer, and schal kitte the nailes aboute...
  You should bring her into your house; that woman should shave her hair and cut her nails...
A nail (metal fastening pin):
- a. 1400, Geoffrey Chaucer, “The Knight's Tale”, in The Canterbury Tales, lines 2007–2008:
  The nayl ydryven in the shode anyght; / The colde deeth, with mouth gapyng upright...
  The nail driven in the head's crown at night; / The cold death, with mouth gaping upright...
1. (figurative) A bothersome predicament or annoyance.
2. (figurative) A decisive point in a debate or disagreement.
A nail (unit of longness or mass)
The equivalent to a human nail in animals (e.g. a claw)
(rare) An ocular malady present in humans and animals.

Derived terms

Descendants

English: nail
Scots: nail, nale
Yola: niel

References

“nail, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-07-15.

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