toenail

[ toh-neyl ]

noun

1. a nail of a toe.
2. Carpentry. a nail driven obliquely.
3. Printing Slang. a parenthesis.

verb (used with object)

1. Carpentry. to secure with oblique nailing.

toenail

/ ˈtəʊˌneɪl /

noun

1. a thin horny translucent plate covering part of the dorsal surface of the end joint of each toe ungualungular
2. carpentry a nail driven obliquely, as in joining one beam at right angles to another
3. slang.
   printing a parenthesis

verb

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of toenail¹

First recorded in 1835–45; toe + nail

Example Sentences

Then they went to Burt Hooton, but he also hurt his toenail.

From Los Angeles Times

But I still had filth under my toenails for weeks.

From Salon

His gigantic, grotesque foot with its mangled big toe and icky toenails.

From Los Angeles Times

In his letter he described witnessing “cases of extreme distress” in which competing dogs had “recent pools of blood” around them after ripping off their toenails while “clawing” at their caged doors.

From BBC

Turtle skulls, elephant toenails and sea cucumbers were among the thousands of animal and plant products seized at Los Angeles International Aiport’s mail facility over the last seven months.

From Los Angeles Times