Nail

, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nailed (nld); p. pr. & vb. n. Nailing.] [AS. nglian. See Nail, n.] 1. To fasten with a nail or nails; to close up or secure by means of nails; as, to nail boards to the beams.
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He is now dead, and nailed in his chest.

Chaucer.
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2. To stud or boss with nails, or as with nails.
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The rivets of your arms were nailed with gold.

Dryden.
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3. To fasten, as with a nail; to bind or hold, as to a bargain or to acquiescence in an argument or assertion; hence, to catch; to trap.
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When they came to talk of places in town, you saw at once how I nailed them.

Goldsmith.
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4. To spike, as a cannon. [Obs.] Crabb.
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To nail an assertion or To nail a lie, etc., to detect and expose it, so as to put a stop to its currency; -- an expression probably derived from the former practice of shopkeepers, who were accustomed to nail bad or counterfeit pieces of money to the counter.
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Thu 21st August 2008