Nail
Nail verb - To deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner.
Usage example: the boxer nailed his opponent with a devastating left hook
Punch
Punch verb - To deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner.
Usage example: after the man had punched the bartender for eighty-sixing him, bouncers stepped in and restrained him until the police could arrive
Mutual synonyms
How words are described
| special | special nail | special punch |
| long | long nail | long punch |
| straight | straight nail | straight punch |
| single | single nail | single punch |
| Other adjectives: heavy, actual, real, big, huge, final, extra, last, literal, bigger. | ||
Common collocations
Both words in one sentence
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Often an Action Girl will punch a Mook pretty hard, and as he hits the ground, she'll jokingly whine, "Damn, I broke a nail (in the sense of "you ruined my manicure"), now you have to pay."
Source: I Broke a Nail -
Rails will easily punch through a robot lacking on armor, possibly even scoring a One-Hit Kill if you can nail a critical connection point.
Source: Videogame / Robocraft -
Especially satisfying in Title Defense if you nail him with a Star Punch as he's trying to get you with his whip-glove before going down.
Source: Characters / Punch-Out!!
Cite this Source
Punch and Nail. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 01, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/nail/punch
Nail & Punch. N.p., 2016. Web. 01 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/nail/punch>.
Punch or Nail. 2016. Accessed August 01, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/nail/punch.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "nail" and "punch" have occurred on timeline