Manicure terms, plainly explained
The names for the parts of a nail and the things that happen to them — the vocabulary a technician uses every day.
Hangnail
A strip of skin, not nail, that has torn away beside the nail. Cut it flush — pulling it takes living tissue with it.
Hyponychium
The skin sealing the underside of the nail where the free edge lifts away. Sensitive, easily injured, and the reason short nails can feel tender.