nail down

phrasal verb

nailed down; nailing down; nails down

: to make (something, such as a victory) certain to happen

They need to score another touchdown to nail down the victory.

: 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.

: to make (something) definite or final

nail down a decision

Examples of nail down in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web That first one, though, is in a league of her own lately: Swiatek has won 45 of the 49 matches she’s played this year, is coming off winning her fourth French Open title, and seems utterly indomitable…except, for some reason which nobody has yet nailed down, Wimbledon. —

Corey Seymour, Vogue, 1 July 2024 Jennifer Lopez has given us countless different hairstyles over the years, but she’s also nailed down her go-to signature look: a variation of bouncy midi-length bronde hair, scattered with shiny caramel and honey highlights. —

Elle Turner, Glamour, 28 June 2024 The song list hasn’t been nailed down, but fans may hear some Prince deep cuts or additional songs by the Time or Apollonia 6. —

David Browne, Rolling Stone, 20 June 2024 Tonkin had just finished off Monday’s 4-2 win in Kansas City by nailing down a save, the second of his career and his first with the Yankees. —

Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 11 June 2024 See all Example Sentences for nail down

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.