Definitions for thumb
θʌmthumb

Princeton's WordNet(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. thumb, pollex(noun)

   the thick short innermost digit of the forelimb

2. thumb(noun)

   the part of a glove that provides a covering for the thumb

3. ovolo, thumb, quarter round(verb)

   a convex molding having a cross section in the form of a quarter of a circle or of an ellipse

4. hitchhike, hitch, thumb(verb)

   travel by getting free rides from motorists

5. flick, flip, thumb, riffle, leaf, riff(verb)

   look through a book or other written material

   "He thumbed through the report"; "She leafed through the volume"

6. finger, thumb(verb)

   feel or handle with the fingers

   "finger the binding of the book"

Wiktionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. thumb(Noun)

   The short thick digit of the hand that for humans has the most mobility and can be made to oppose (moved to touch) all of the other fingers.

   Etymology: Middle English thoume, thoumbe, from þuma, from þūmô (cf. West Frisian tomme, Dutch duim, German Daumen), from tūm- (cf. Albanian thumb,thimth, thembër, Romanian tumburush, Welsh tyfu, Latin tumere, Lithuanian tumėti, Ancient Greek 'burial mound', Avestan 'strong', Sanskrit 'strong, thick').

2. thumb(Noun)

   The part of a slider that may be moved linearly along the slider.

   Etymology: Middle English thoume, thoumbe, from þuma, from þūmô (cf. West Frisian tomme, Dutch duim, German Daumen), from tūm- (cf. Albanian thumb,thimth, thembër, Romanian tumburush, Welsh tyfu, Latin tumere, Lithuanian tumėti, Ancient Greek 'burial mound', Avestan 'strong', Sanskrit 'strong, thick').

3. thumb(Noun)

   A thumbnail picture.

   Etymology: Middle English thoume, thoumbe, from þuma, from þūmô (cf. West Frisian tomme, Dutch duim, German Daumen), from tūm- (cf. Albanian thumb,thimth, thembër, Romanian tumburush, Welsh tyfu, Latin tumere, Lithuanian tumėti, Ancient Greek 'burial mound', Avestan 'strong', Sanskrit 'strong, thick').

4. thumb(Verb)

   To touch with the thumb.

   Etymology: Middle English thoume, thoumbe, from þuma, from þūmô (cf. West Frisian tomme, Dutch duim, German Daumen), from tūm- (cf. Albanian thumb,thimth, thembër, Romanian tumburush, Welsh tyfu, Latin tumere, Lithuanian tumėti, Ancient Greek 'burial mound', Avestan 'strong', Sanskrit 'strong, thick').

5. thumb(Verb)

   To turn the pages of (a book) in order to read it cursorily.

   I thumbed through the book and decided not to bother reading it all.

   Etymology: Middle English thoume, thoumbe, from þuma, from þūmô (cf. West Frisian tomme, Dutch duim, German Daumen), from tūm- (cf. Albanian thumb,thimth, thembër, Romanian tumburush, Welsh tyfu, Latin tumere, Lithuanian tumėti, Ancient Greek 'burial mound', Avestan 'strong', Sanskrit 'strong, thick').

6. thumb(Verb)

   To hitchhike

   So I started thumbin' back east, toward my hometown.

   Etymology: Middle English thoume, thoumbe, from þuma, from þūmô (cf. West Frisian tomme, Dutch duim, German Daumen), from tūm- (cf. Albanian thumb,thimth, thembër, Romanian tumburush, Welsh tyfu, Latin tumere, Lithuanian tumėti, Ancient Greek 'burial mound', Avestan 'strong', Sanskrit 'strong, thick').

Wikipedia(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Thumb

   The thumb is the first digit (finger) of the hand. When a person is standing in the medical anatomical position (where the palm is facing to the front), the thumb is the outermost digit. The Medical Latin English noun for thumb is pollex (compare hallux for big toe), and the corresponding adjective for thumb is pollical.

Webster Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Thumb(noun)

   the short, thick first digit of the human hand, differing from the other fingers in having but two phalanges; the pollex. See Pollex

2. Thumb(verb)

   to handle awkwardly

3. Thumb(verb)

   to play with the thumbs, or with the thumbs and fingers; as, to thumb over a tune

4. Thumb(verb)

   to soil or wear with the thumb or the fingers; to soil, or wear out, by frequent handling; also, to cover with the thumb; as, to thumb the touch-hole of a cannon

5. Thumb(verb)

   to play with the thumb or thumbs; to play clumsily; to thrum

Freebase(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Thumb

   The thumb is the first digit of the hand. When a person is standing in the medical anatomical position, the thumb is the outermost digit. The Medical Latin English noun for thumb is pollex, and the corresponding adjective for thumb is pollical.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Thumb

   thum, n. the short, thick digit, consisting of two phalanges, on the radial side of the human hand: the corresponding member in other animals.—v.t. to handle awkwardly: to play or soil with the thumb or fingers.—v.i. to finger.—adj. Thumbed, having thumbs: marked by the thumb, worn.—ns. Thumb′kin, Thumb′screw, an old instrument of torture for compressing the thumb by means of a screw.—adj. Thumb′less.—ns. Thumb′-mark, a mark left by the impression of the thumb on the pages of a book, &c.; Thumb′piece, a piece serving as a support for the thumb: a knob or projection by means of which a spring is worked by pressure of the thumb; Thumb′pot, a very small pot used by florists for starting slips or seedlings; Thumb′-ring (Shak.), a ring worn on the thumb: a ring for the thumb fastened to the guard of a dagger or sword; Thumb′-stall, a covering or sheath for the thumb.—By rule of thumb, in a rough-and-ready practical manner, found by experience to be convenient; Under one's thumb, under one's influence. [With intrusive b from A.S. þuma; cog. with Ger. daumen.]

The New Hacker's Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. thumb

   The slider on a window-system scrollbar. So called because moving it allows you to browse through the contents of a text window in a way analogous to thumbing through a book.

Editors Contribution(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. thumb

   A facet of the human hand.

   We all have a thumb on each hand.

   Submitted by MaryC on March 8, 2020  

Suggested Resources(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. thumb

   The thumb symbol -- In this Symbols.com article you will learn about the meaning of the thumb symbol and its characteristic.

2. thumb

   Song lyrics by thumb -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by thumb on the Lyrics.com website.

British National Corpus

1. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'thumb' in Nouns Frequency: #2412

How to pronounce thumb?

1. Alex

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

How to say thumb in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of thumb in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of thumb in Pythagorean Numerology is: 1

Examples of thumb in a Sentence

1. Lars Noah:

   The Bates decision by now sticks out like a sore thumb, bayer has more than enough ammunition in recent Supreme Court cases to show the trial court judges got it wrong.

2. John W. Gardner:

   Storybook happiness involves every form of pleasant thumb-twiddling true happiness involves the full use of one's powers and talents.

3. Dejan Ilijevski:

   [For student loan debt] a general rule of thumb is to take out no more than the expected yearly salary of the college major

4. Jeffrey Guzzetti:

   It will be jarring if other countries don't immediately follow. I'll be disappointed. But I guess I won't be too surprised if other countries thumb their nose at us and don't follow immediately.

5. Elizabeth Smith:

   He went in with eight gunshot wounds, a broken thumb/wrist, fractured jaw, split tongue, missing teeth, two collapsed lungs, and almost completely devoid of blood.

Images & Illustrations of thumb

Popularity rank by frequency of use