noun Pathology.
- inflammation of the folds of skin bordering a nail of a finger or toe, usually characterized by infection and pus formation; felon.
n.inflammation beside a fingernail, 1590s, from Latin, from Greek paronykhia “whitlow,” from para- “beside” (see para- (1)) + onyx “nail” (see nail (n.)). n.
- Inflammation of the tissue surrounding a nail.