cop
/ˈkɑp/
verbnoun
Core
1.v.take by theft
“Someone snitched my wallet!”
2.v.take into custody
“the police nabbed the suspected criminals”
3.n.uncomplimentary terms for a policeman
Loading page
cop and nail share a recorded sense, so the question is not what they mean but which one fits. cop means “take by theft”. nail means “attach something somewhere by means of nails”. cop is the more common of the two in everyday English.
/ˈkɑp/
1.v.take by theft
“Someone snitched my wallet!”
2.v.take into custody
“the police nabbed the suspected criminals”
3.n.uncomplimentary terms for a policeman
/ˈneɪl/
1.v.attach something somewhere by means of nails
“nail the board onto the wall”
2.v.take into custody
“the police nabbed the suspected criminals”
3.v.hit hard
“He smashed a 3-run homer”
| cop | nail | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /ˈkɑp/ | /ˈneɪl/ |
| Said | kahp | nayl |
| Syllables | 1 | 1 |
| Letters | 3 | 4 |
| Parts of speech | verb, noun | verb, noun |
| Senses | 3 | 10 |
| How common | Core | Common |
| Synonyms | hook, snitch, thieve | none recorded |