nail down
phrasal verb
nailed down; nailing down; nails down
1
: to make (something, such as a victory) certain to happen
They need to score another touchdown to nail down the victory.
2
: to find out or identify (something) exactly
Her doctors haven't yet been able to nail down a diagnosis.
They're trying to nail down the cause of our network problems.
3
: to make (something) definite or final
nail down a decision
Examples of nail down in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Her costar, Sterling K. Brown, explained why Affleck, 51, would read the lines of Smith, her AI companion, voiced by Gregory James Cohan, to help Lopez nail down her character.
—
Ingrid Vasquez, Peoplemag, 25 May 2024
Much of this is stuff that other smartwatch makers already nailed down a while back.
—Victoria Song, The Verge, 15 May 2024
Still tinkering with the grip, Rodriguez is trying to nail down a pitch shape that mimics the four-seamer but has more horizontal movement.
—Matt Weyrich, Baltimore Sun, 29 Feb. 2024
Image Her bridal stylist, Gabrielle Hurwitz, based in New York, introduced her to the designer Patricia Voto, founder of the brand One Of, who helped nail down her wedding day look.
—Ivy Manners, New York Times, 9 May 2024
Royals reliever James McArthur nailed down his fourth save as KC improved to 12-6.
—Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 17 Apr. 2024
But correlation is not the same as cause and effect, and scientists have not nailed down the exact relationship between periodontitis, which affects more than 11 percent of the global population, and various systemic diseases.
—Lola Butcher, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 Mar. 2024
As for other big decisions, the guest list is yet to be nailed down.
—Gillian Telling, Peoplemag, 18 Jan. 2024
More research is needed to nail down exactly how this chemical reaction between the bacteria and IgA plays out in humans.
—Theresa Gaffney, STAT, 27 Mar. 2024
Ingrid Vasquez, Peoplemag, 25 May 2024
Much of this is stuff that other smartwatch makers already nailed down a while back.
—Victoria Song, The Verge, 15 May 2024
Still tinkering with the grip, Rodriguez is trying to nail down a pitch shape that mimics the four-seamer but has more horizontal movement.
—Matt Weyrich, Baltimore Sun, 29 Feb. 2024
Image Her bridal stylist, Gabrielle Hurwitz, based in New York, introduced her to the designer Patricia Voto, founder of the brand One Of, who helped nail down her wedding day look.
—Ivy Manners, New York Times, 9 May 2024
Royals reliever James McArthur nailed down his fourth save as KC improved to 12-6.
—Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 17 Apr. 2024
But correlation is not the same as cause and effect, and scientists have not nailed down the exact relationship between periodontitis, which affects more than 11 percent of the global population, and various systemic diseases.
—Lola Butcher, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 Mar. 2024
As for other big decisions, the guest list is yet to be nailed down.
—Gillian Telling, Peoplemag, 18 Jan. 2024
More research is needed to nail down exactly how this chemical reaction between the bacteria and IgA plays out in humans.
—Theresa Gaffney, STAT, 27 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'nail down.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near nail down
Cite this Entry
“Nail down.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nail%20down. Accessed 31 May. 2024.
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