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nail
A small, pointed metal pin with a flat head that is driven into wood or other materials to fasten things.
Er schlug einen Nagel in die Wand, um das neue Bild aufzuhängen.
He drove a nail into the wall to hang up the new picture.
nail
The hard horn plate at the upper end of the fingers (fingernail) and toes (toenail) in humans and primates.
Sie hat sich beim Zuknallen der Tür einen Nagel abgebrochen.
She broke a nail when the door slammed shut.
to hang something up for good
An idiom meaning to give up an activity, profession, or hobby.
Nach seiner schweren Verletzung musste der Profisportler seine Karriere an den Nagel hängen.
After his serious injury, the professional athlete had to hang up his career for good.
to hit the nail on the head
An idiom meaning that with a statement or action, you say or do exactly the right thing.
Mit deiner Analyse der Situation hast du wirklich den Nagel auf den Kopf getroffen.
With your analysis of the situation, you really hit the nail on the head.
You distinguish the meanings by context. Verbs like 'hämmern' (to hammer) or 'einschlagen' (to drive in) and nouns like 'Wand' (wall) or 'Holz' (wood) point to the metal pin. Verbs like 'lackieren' (to paint/polish) or 'schneiden' (to cut) and nouns like 'Finger' (finger) or 'Zeh' (toe) point to the fingernail.
Kannst du mir den Hammer geben? Ich brauche noch einen Nagel.
Can you give me the hammer? I still need a nail.
When referring to the metal pin, the most important verbs are 'einschlagen' (to drive in) and 'ziehen' (to pull out). The typical construction is: 'einen Nagel in etwas (Akkusativ) schlagen' (to drive a nail into something, accusative).
Er hat den Nagel mit nur drei Schlägen in die Wand geschlagen.
He drove the nail into the wall with only three blows.
In the meaning 'Fingernagel' (fingernail), the word is often used with reflexive personal-care verbs. Typical phrases are 'sich die Nägel schneiden' (to cut one's nails), 'sich die Nägel feilen' (to file one's nails), or 'sich die Nägel lackieren' (to paint/polish one's nails).
Ich muss mir dringend mal wieder die Nägel schneiden.
I really need to cut my nails again.
The idiom 'etwas an den Nagel hängen' (to hang something up for good) means to give up an activity, profession, or hobby permanently. The thing you give up is in the accusative.
Nach der Geburt ihres Kindes hat sie ihren Job an den Nagel gehängt.
After the birth of her child, she gave up her job for good.
'Den Nagel auf den Kopf treffen' (to hit the nail on the head) is a very common idiom. It means that a comment or an analysis is exactly accurate.
Deine Beschreibung seines Charakters hat den Nagel auf den Kopf getroffen.
Your description of his character hit the nail on the head.
fingernail
Both der Nagel and der Fingernagel can refer to the hard plate at the end of a finger. Fingernagel is unambiguous, whereas Nagel without context can also mean a metal nail used for fastening things. Fingernagel is therefore the more suitable choice when confusion should be avoided.
Nach dem Aufprall ist ihr ein Nagel am Zeigefinger eingerissen.
She split a nail on her index finger when she hit it.
Nach dem Aufprall ist ihr ein Fingernagel am Zeigefinger eingerissen.
She split a fingernail on her index finger when she hit it.
