thumb

noun

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\ ˈthəm

plural thumbs

Definition of thumb

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : the short thick digit of the human hand that is analogous in position to the big toe and differs from the other fingers in having only two phalanges, allowing greater freedom of movement, and being opposable to each of them also : a corresponding digit in lower animals

2 : the part of a glove or mitten that covers the thumb

3 : something resembling or suggesting a thumb I steep the tea with a thumb of ginger, which brings a lovely hint of spice …— Sarah Nasello I stop for a while among the crowds at the Pinnacle, a thumb of rock protruding from the rim of the Wonderland Range above Halls Gap.— Andrew Bain

4 : a convex molding : ovolo

all thumbs

: extremely awkward or clumsy

under one's thumb or under the thumb

: under control : in a state of subservience her father did not have her that much under his thumb— Hamilton Basso

thumb

verb

thumbed; thumbing; thumbs

Definition of thumb (Entry 2 of 2)

intransitive verb

1 : to turn over pages thumb through a book

2 : to travel by thumbing rides : hitchhike thumbed across the country

transitive verb

1 : to request or obtain (a ride) in a passing automobile by signaling with the thumb

2a : to leaf through (pages) with the thumb : turn

b : to soil or wear by or as if by repeated thumbing a badly thumbed book

thumb one's nose

1 : to express disdain or defiance thumb their nose at opulence — Sales Management

2 : to place the thumb at one's nose and extend the fingers as a gesture of scorn or defiance

Synonyms More Example Sentences Phrases Containing thumb Learn More About thumb

Examples of thumb in a Sentence

Noun a little girl sucking her thumb I accidentally cut my thumb. My mitten has a hole in the thumb. Verb I thumbed a ride to school. He thumbed his way to New York. He thumbed across the country. See More

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun The fossil also revealed a mystery about the thumb, which turned out to be an evolutionary compromise for the giant pandas. — Ashley Strickland, CNN, 2 July 2022 The manicure featured gemstones both big and small plus some iridescent crystals placed along the center of the thumb, middle, and ring finger. — Chelsea Avila, Allure, 21 June 2022 Then, Suggs fractured his right thumb (shooting hand) in a loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Nov. 29, 2021. — Khobi Price, Orlando Sentinel, 24 Apr. 2022 The crypto space in India, as elsewhere, is unregulated, by design of course since the entire point is to circumvent centralised control like big government, big banks and, in the case of NFTs, thumb a nose at ‘big art’ (already barely regulated). — Kamayani Sharma, Quartz, 12 Apr. 2022 For the first half’s Beethoven and Mozart, his right thumb, index, and middle fingers came together to move around a 10-inch square space with sharp flicks of the wrist. — Christian Hertzog, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Mar. 2022 Phoenix improved to 5-3 without Chris Paul (fractured thumb). — Tim Reynolds, ajc, 10 Mar. 2022 In pain, angry and seeing the Knicks trying to pull off an upset, Johnson took his game and emotions to another level in leading the Suns without All-Stars Chris Paul (thumb) and Devin Booker (health and safety protocols). — Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 5 Mar. 2022 The victory was the first game Suggs played since fracturing his right thumb (shooting hand) on Nov. 29. — Khobi Price, orlandosentinel.com, 15 Jan. 2022 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb While some companies continue to thumb their noses at the notion of remote and hybrid work and insist that employees come back into the office, data scientists at Ladders insist that the writing is on the wall. — Bryan Robinson, Forbes, 1 Aug. 2022 But ruangrupa didn’t necessarily set out to thumb its nose at political power. — New York Times, 9 June 2022 Also, an amazing quote and not afraid to thumb his nose at authority. — Nate Davis, USA TODAY, 26 May 2022 The standard pupusas are available, made with either rice or corn flour, but they’re supplemented with inventions that thumb their nose at tradition. — Washington Post, 9 May 2022 Sure, that would have been nice, and nobody would thumb their nose at a million dollars. — Dalton Ross, EW.com, 17 Mar. 2022 Artists could even thumb their noses at their rivals on their home turf. — Amanda Dorenberg, Rolling Stone, 25 Feb. 2022 In a post-truth world dominated by online conspiracy theories, young people have coalesced around the effort to thumb their nose at, fight and poke fun at misinformation. — The New York Times, Arkansas Online, 12 Dec. 2021 In a post-truth world dominated by online conspiracy theories, young people have coalesced around the effort to thumb their nose at, fight and poke fun at misinformation. — The New York Times, Arkansas Online, 12 Dec. 2021 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'thumb.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Learn More About thumb

Dictionary Entries Near thumb

thuluth

thumb

thumb-and-finger rule

Statistics for thumb

Last Updated

6 Aug 2022

Cite this Entry

“Thumb.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/thumb. Accessed 9 Aug. 2022.

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More Definitions for thumb

thumb

noun

\ ˈthəm

Kids Definition of thumb

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : the short thick finger next to the forefinger

2 : the part of a glove covering the thumb

thumb

verb

thumbed; thumbing

Kids Definition of thumb (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : to turn the pages of quickly with the thumb

2 : to seek or get (a ride) in a passing automobile by signaling with the thumb

thumb

noun

\ ˈthəm

Medical Definition of thumb

: the short and thick first or most preaxial digit of the human hand that differs from the other fingers in having only two phalanges, in having greater freedom of movement, and in being opposable to the other fingers