thumb

verb

Definition of thumbnext
1
as in to hitch
to travel by securing free rides thought I'd thumb into town instead of paying for a cab

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in to flip
to turn over pages in an idle or cursory manner I thumbed through the book during the flight but was too distracted to really read it

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of thumb James Ontiveros, ninth-generation grower and owner of Native 9, holds out his right hand, thumb down, to explain the topography of Santa Barbara County. — Michelle Williams, Forbes.com, 25 June 2026 Apple Watch users will also be able to tap their index finger and thumb together once to select a widget in the Smart Stack of the watch to see relevant information, per Apple. — Mason Leath, ABC News, 8 June 2026 Even games with anti-cheat that thumbed their nose at Linux and the Steam Deck are now supporting Windows on Arm, too. — Sean Hollister, The Verge, 1 June 2026 McCain first thumbed the pages en route to the Tarkanian Classic, a notable high school tournament in Las Vegas. — Joel Lorenzi, New York Times, 23 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for thumb
Recent Examples of Synonyms for thumb
  1. hitch
  2. flip
  3. bum
  4. leaf
  5. hitchhike
  6. skim
Verb
  • But when her big bro Sherlock (Henry Cavill) goes missing during the festivities, Enola pauses getting hitched to find him and also unearth a military cover-up.
    — Brian Truitt, USA Today, 3 July 2026
  • With both the bride and groom wearing Christian Dior haute couture and Christian Louboutin shoes, the 14x Grammy winner and 3x Super Bowl champion were hitched within the last half hour at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
    — Dominic Patten, Deadline, 3 July 2026
Definition of hitch
Verb
  • The animal charged toward the visitor, chased him back and forth through a patch of trees, and, ultimately, struck the man with its horns, launching and flipping him over.
    — Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 13 July 2026
  • Despite his attempt to run from the animal and hide behind trees, the animal catches up to the man and uses its head and horns to flip him into the air.
    — Desiree Anello, PEOPLE, 12 July 2026
Definition of flip
Verb
  • Great, for once the Leafs won’t bum me out!
    — Sean McIndoe, New York Times, 26 June 2026
  • Yet with these new songs out in the world, the three musicians don’t seem particularly bummed not to have their old ones in ready circulation.
    — Mikael Wood, Los Angeles Times, 1 June 2026
Definition of bum
Verb
  • Planting a leafed-out, growing hosta from a pot is identical to any other transplanting process.
    — Samantha Johnson, Martha Stewart, 29 June 2026
  • Twelve-hundred years passed in the shade of the Major Oak of Sherwood Forest before it was declared dead after failing to come to leaf.
    — Karina Zaiets, USA Today, 19 June 2026
Definition of leaf
Verb
  • Long ago, a train-riding and hitchhiking tour of several European countries took me to Belgium, where I was graciously taken in by the family of an American friend of mine.
    — Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 July 2026
  • Dreesen moved to Los Angeles, living on $1 a day and hitchhiking to The Comedy Store, begging for a set and bonding with other impoverished comedians.
    — Theresa Braine, New York Daily News, 18 June 2026
Definition of hitchhike
Verb
  • The Rotary Mouse is suited for user tasks that require a lot of scrolling such as reading websites, writing lengthy documents, skimming spreadsheets, coding, or large amounts of video editing.
    — Shirl Leigh July 12, New Atlas, 12 July 2026
  • Consumers can help protect themselves from skimming by inspecting card readers before use, covering the keypad when entering a PIN, monitoring account activity regularly, and promptly reporting suspicious transactions to their financial institution.
    — Mary Ella Hastings July 9, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 July 2026
Definition of skim

Phrases Containing thumb

Browse Nearby Words

thugs
thumb
thumbed
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Thumb.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/thumb. Accessed 16 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on thumb

Nglish: Translation of thumb for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about thumb

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of bibelot

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
child-detective
Spot the Misspelled Word July 2026 Those little red underlines can't help you now...
See All