Use talons for the strong curved claws of raptors and similar predators, especially when the claws are used for seizing prey.
Use talons for the strong curved claws of raptors and similar predators, especially when the claws are used for seizing prey.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| The eagle has two talon. | The eagle has two talons. |
| The hawk caught the mouse with its beaks. | The hawk caught the mouse with its talons. |
| The dog dug with its talons. | The dog dug with its claws. |
Use talons when a technical part is shaped or works like a claw, and prefer the exact part name when the mechanism has one.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| The wheel's talons rolled across the floor. | The wheel rolled across the floor. |
| The lock's talons are the key teeth. | The lock's talons are parts of the bolt acted on by the key. |
| The robot's talons are its cameras. | The robot's cameras are its sensors. |
Use talons in card-game rules for undealt stocks, especially in games influenced by French or German card terminology.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| Each player held a talon of five cards. | Each player held a hand of five cards. |
| The winner took the talons from the middle as money. | The winner took the pot from the middle as money. |
| The talons were dealt equally to every player. | The talons were left undealt until later in the game. |
Use talons in architectural or woodworking contexts for this moulding profile, not for any decorative projection on a building.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| The talons hold up the balcony. | The brackets hold up the balcony. |
| The roof was topped with stone talons shaped like urns. | The roof was topped with stone finials shaped like urns. |
| Any pointed carving on a cornice is a talon. | A talon is an ogee-like moulding profile. |
Use talons for the historical bond slips that renewed coupon sheets, and use coupons for the individual interest-payment slips themselves.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| The investor clipped a talon for every interest payment. | The investor clipped a coupon for every interest payment. |
| The talons paid interest every six months. | The coupons paid interest every six months. |
| A modern electronic bond comes with paper talons. | Old bearer bonds could come with paper talons. |
Use talons most often for the hooked claws of raptors, and keep the technical senses for contexts where card rules, mouldings, locks, machinery, or old bearer bonds make them clear.
Two talon drops the plural ending, while coupons names interest slips and talons names the old renewal slips attached to some bearer bonds.
From Middle English talon or taloun, from Old French talon meaning heel or spur, ultimately from Latin talus meaning ankle.
What are talons?
Talons are sharp, hooked claws, especially the claws of birds of prey such as eagles, hawks, falcons, and owls.
Are talons the same as claws?
Talons are a kind of claw, usually a strong curved one used by a predator to grip or tear.
Can people have talons?
Long or sharp fingernails may be jokingly called talons, but nails is the plain everyday word.
What do talons mean in card games?
In some card games, talons are undealt stocks of cards set aside for later use.
What are talons in architecture?
In architecture and woodworking, talons can mean ogee-like moulding profiles with concave and convex curves.
What are talons on old bonds?
On old bearer bonds, talons were detachable slips used to obtain a new sheet of coupons after the first coupons were used.
What is the singular of talons?
The singular is talon, as in one eagle talon or one talon attached to a bearer bond.
Where does talons come from?
Talons comes from the singular talon, through Middle English and Old French from a word meaning heel or spur.