A thin pointed piece of metal hammered into materials to join them together, or the hard covering at the end of fingers and toes.
From Old English 'nægel', related to German 'Nagel' and Latin 'unguis'. Originally meant the fingernail, with the metal fastener sense developing later due to shape similarity.
The phrase 'hit the nail on the head' comes from carpentry, where precision was crucial - a skilled carpenter could drive a nail with one accurate blow. Interestingly, ancient Romans used iron nails so commonly that archaeologists use nail types to date historical sites.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.