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
So Flynn, Peppe and their colleagues turned to two high-tech dating techniques to nail down the rocks' age.
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Dino Grandoni The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 26 Oct. 2025
Gabriel has been prioritized over Sanders thus nailing down the backup role in training camp and then ultimately supplanting Joe Flacco (who was later traded) as the starter.
—Matthew Schmidt, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Oct. 2025
The exact timeline of the appointment process is yet to be nailed down.
—Hannah Elsmore, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Oct. 2025
Ancient people tried the recipes many times before nailing down a method, Durgun said.
—Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nail down
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Dino Grandoni The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 26 Oct. 2025
Gabriel has been prioritized over Sanders thus nailing down the backup role in training camp and then ultimately supplanting Joe Flacco (who was later traded) as the starter.
—Matthew Schmidt, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Oct. 2025
The exact timeline of the appointment process is yet to be nailed down.
—Hannah Elsmore, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Oct. 2025
Ancient people tried the recipes many times before nailing down a method, Durgun said.
—Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nail down
Cite this Entry
“Nail down.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nail%20down. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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