onych-, onycho-, ony-, -onychia, -onychial, -onychium, -onyx- +

(Greek: claw, nail; fingernails, toenails)

onychomancy, onycomancy
A specialized phase of onychomancy whereby a person’s future is determined by the appearance of the fingernails themselves.

This has become an aspect of cheiromancy.

onychomantist
Someone who predicts a person’s future by the appearance of the fingernails themselves.
onychomycosis
Any fungal infection of the nails.

The nails become opaque, split, are white, are thickened, and flake; or easily crumble.

onychonosus
Onychopathy, or any disease of the fingernails or toenails.
onychopacity
A white spotting, streaking, or discoloration of the fingernails and toenails caused by injury or ill health.
onychopathic (adjective) (not comparable)
A reference to any disease of the fingernail or toenails: Joe learned that onychopathic disorders could be caused by having contact with irritants or toxics, for example.
onychopathology (s) (noun) (no pl)
The study of disorders of the nails; onychology: Jill read that the outdated term onychopathology, relating to the science of finger and toe nails, was not used any more in the working medical language.

The dermatologist that Mary went to said that the formal discipline of onychopathology did research in the past on the kind of ailment she had regarding her nails becoming dry, yellowish, and cracking.

onychopathy (s) (noun), onychopathies (pl)
Any disease of the fingernails and toenails; onychosis: Grace's mother had deformed toenails which caused her much pain, and her dermatologist informed her that she had a case of onychopathy that should be treated right away.
onychophagia (s) (noun)
The nervous habit of biting one's fingernails; habitual nail biting: "When under tension, his onychophagia was most obvious."

"Trina uses artificial nails to cover up the damage caused by her onychophagia."

"Glen, if you can't control your onychophagia, you will have to be taken an onychophagiologist for treatment."

onychophagiologist (s), onychophagiologists (pl) (nouns)
A doctor specializing in the nervous habit of biting the finger nails: "Shelby had to be taken to an onychophabiologist so she could be cured of the damage caused by her onychophagia."

onychophagist (s), onychophagists (pl) (noun forms)
Those who chew on their fingernails: "Some onychophagists try to avoid letting others see their nail biting habits, but quite often they are so upset that they can't help themselves."
onychophagy (s), onychophagies (pl) (noun forms)
The habit of biting one's finger nails: "As a result of tensions and uncertainties, the onychophagies of the children were easily seen by the pediatrician; who also considered himself to be an onychophagiatrician or an onychophagiatrist."

"The woman used artificial nails to hide the damage to her natural finger nails caused by her onychophagy."

onychophosis
An accumulation of horny layers of epidermis under a toenail, or toenails.
onychophyma
1. Painful degeneration of a nail, or nails, with hypertrophy (abnormal enlargement).
2. Enlarged, or thickened, fingernails and toenails.
onychoptosis
1. The dropping off of the the fingernails and/or toenails.
2. The downward displacement of the nails.

A cross reference, directly or indirectly, involving a word unit meaning "nail (finger, toe); claw": ungu-.