hangnail

[ hang-neyl ]
/ ˈhæŋˌneɪl /

noun

a small piece of partly detached skin at the side or base of the fingernail.
Compare whitlow.

Origin of hangnail

1300–50; Middle English angenayle corn, Old English angnægl, equivalent to ang- (variant of enge narrow, painful; cognate with German eng, see anger) + nægl callus, nail; modern h- by association with hang

Words nearby hangnail

hanging wall, hangingfly, hangman, hangman's fracture, hangman's knot, hangnail, hangout, hangover, hangry, hangtag, hangtown fry

Example sentences from the Web for hangnail

British Dictionary definitions for hangnail

hangnail
/ (ˈhæŋˌneɪl) /

noun

a piece of skin torn away from, but still attached to, the base or side of a fingernail

Word Origin for hangnail

C17: from Old English angnægl, from enge tight + nægl nail; influenced by hang

Medical definitions for hangnail

hangnail
[ hăng′nāl′ ]

n.

A small piece of dead skin at the side or the base of a fingernail that is partly detached from the rest of the skin.