thumbn.
/θʌm/, U.S. /θəm/ 1. figurative.1895 S. Baring-Gould Noémi xxii I must have more men. I dare not leave Domme [a fortress] without a thumb on it to hold it down.† b. The corresponding digit of the foot; the great toe. Obsolete.
a. The short thick inner digit of the human hand, opposable to the fingers, and distinguished from them by having only two phalanges; hence, gen., the inner digit of a limb when opposable to and set apart from the other digits (as in the Quadrumana and opossums).
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > external parts of body > limb > digit > finger > [noun] > thumb
thumba700
strongc1300
vice-hand1644
pollex1702
thumby1811
thumb-finger1855
a700 Epinal Gloss. 821 Pollux, thuma.
a901 Laws K. Ælfred c. 56 gif se ðuma bið ofaslægen, þam sceal xxx scill. to bote.
c1000 Sax. Leechd. III. 18 Swa greate swa ðin þuma.
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 18 & markeð on ower muð ancros mid þeþume.
c1290 S. Eng. Leg. I. 308/319 Strongue is þe þoumbe I-cleoped.
c1375 Lay Folks Mass Bk. (MS. B.) 158 Makes a cros vpon þo letter with his thoume.
13.. Minor Poems fr. Vernon MS. xxv. 296 Þi þhommes and þi ffyngres.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 21244 Men sais þat of his thumb [Fairf. thowme, Gött. tumb, Trin. Cambr. þombe] he smate, And þat was noght bot for to fle.
c1440 Gesta Romanorum (Harl.) xxii. 72 Tho anon he toke the thome of the dede man, and made him to seal hit [a charter] with a fals seal.
?a1500 Nominale (Yale Beinecke 594) in T. Wright & R. P. Wülcker Anglo-Saxon & Old Eng. Vocab. (1884) I. 749/31 Hic pollex, a thumb.
1507 in I. S. Leadam Select Cases Star Chamber (1903) I. 260 They hade maymed one William Thomson..& cutte of his right thom.
1598 W. Shakespeare Henry IV, Pt. 1 i. iii. 36 Twixt his finger and his thumbe he helde A pouncet boxe. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) iv. i. 61 By the pricking of my Thumbes, Something wicked this way comes. View more context for this quotation
1662 Reg. Privy Council Scotl. 3rd Ser. I. 237 They..tortured the women by waking, hanging them up by the thombes, burning the soles of their feet at the fyre.
1662 E. Stillingfleet Origines Sacræ iii. i. §16 The thumb, which may equally joyn with any of the fingers in taking hold of any thing.
1712 J. Browne tr. P. Pomet et al. Compl. Hist. Druggs I. 152 A round Stalk, the Thickness of two Thumbs.
1833 Penny Cycl. I. 183/2 The hinder extremities [of the chimpanzee] are..marked by a thumb—a finger opposed to the other fingers.
1840 Penny Cycl. XVI. 458/1 [Opossum] The whole of this subfamily [Didelphidæ] have the inner toe of the hind foot converted into a thumb.
1869 W. C. Hazlitt Eng. Prov. & Phr. 373 The richer the cobbler, the blacker his thumb.
1893 J. A. Hodges Elem. Photogr. (1907) 78 Held between the thumb and finger of the left hand.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > external parts of body > limb > digit > toe > [noun] > big toe
thumble-toec1440
thumb?a1475
big toe1699
tom toe1823
hallux1831
?a1475 (?a1425) tr. R. Higden Polychron. (Harl. 2261) (1869) II. 189 A thowmbe [L. pollex; Trevisa, greet too] in the ryȝhte foote of Pyrrhus kynge, the towchenge of whom ȝafe subsidy ageyne venom.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Judges i. 6 They cut of the thombes of his handes and fete.
a1643 J. Shute Judgem. & Mercy (1645) 38 Adonibezek cut off the thumbs both of the hands and feet of seventy kings.
c. In the lower animals generally: The inmost digit of the fore-foot; in a bird, the first digit of the wing, bearing the bastard-wing or alula; also the hind toe, inner hind toe, or hallux; in insects: see quot. 1826.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > animal body > general parts > body and limbs > [noun] > digit > innermost
thumb1607
the world > animals > birds > parts of or bird defined by > [noun] > wing or wings > part of
pinion?a1425
juck1575
shoulder1735
wrista1836
wing1867
propatagium1872
thumb1872
patagium1887
flight-muscle1890
1607 E. Topsell Hist. Foure-footed Beastes 546 The Nut-Mouse,..hath foure clawes or distinct toes, for hee wanteth a Thombe.
1797 Encycl. Brit. XIV. 612/1 The fore-feet [of a seal] are like the human hand, the middle toe being the longest and the thumb short.
1826 W. Kirby & W. Spence Introd. Entomol. III. 370 Pollex (the Thumb). A small accessory joint, attached to the Ungula of the Manus in Mantis.
1828 J. Stark Elements Nat. Hist. I. 116 [Lemming] Fore-feet pentadactylous; nail of the thumb short and rounded.
1854 R. Owen Struct. Skeleton & Teeth in Orr's Circle Sci.: Org. Nature I. 223 Those which are attached to the short outer digit,..erroneously called the ‘thumb’, are the..bastard feathers.
1860 R. G. Mayne Expos. Lexicon Med. Sci. Thumb,..Ornithol., applied to a small bone of the hand, or third portion of the anterior extremity..also to the shortest toe.., situated behind... Zool., applied to the first finger of the anterior extremity, or fore~foot of certain of the Reptilia.
1872 E. Coues Key to N. Amer. Birds 30 The forefinger hand-bone sticks out a little from the side of the principal one, and bears on its end one finger-bone..which is commonly, but wrongly, called the bird's ‘thumb’.
1894 A. Newton et al. Dict. Birds: Pt. III 737 Pollex, the thumb or first digit of the wing.
2. transferred. The part of a glove or mitten which covers the thumb.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > clothing for hands > [noun] > mitten > thumb
thumb1888
thumb-piece1891
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > clothing for hands > [noun] > glove > parts of > thumb
thumb1888
thumb-piece1891
1888 in Cassell's Encycl. Dict. VII.
3. A thing or part analogous to or in some way resembling a thumb; e.g. a projecting spur or stump of a woody plant, a tool, etc.; also (cf. Tom Thumb n.) a diminutive animal or object; see quots.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > part of plant > shoot, sprout, or branch > [noun] > spur
thumb1745
brachyblast1895
the world > animals > animal body > [noun] > small animal
oryxa1382
small deer14..
mite1594
animalcule1599
insect1601
animalillio1647
minim of nature1667
animalcula1716
beastie1765
beastling1789
thumb1854
the world > space > extension in space > measurable spatial extent > smallness > [noun] > that which is small > a small thing
minutea1450
minim1590
mite1594
titmouse1596
moteling1605
atom1633
thingling1652
long-little1653
parvitude1659
bodikin1668
eschantillon1720
niff-naff1808
smolt1808
runt1819
titty-tottya1825
featherweight1838
thinglet1839
shable1842
thumb1854
nubbin1857
speckle1882
teeny-weeny1894
hickey1909
tiddler1937
pinhead1951
1745 tr. L. J. M. Columella Of Husbandry iv. ii Having remarked the thumb of the former year [L. superioris anni pollice] one may leave one or two eyes from which it may germinate.
1775 W. Marshall Minutes Agric. 20 Sept. (1778) A corn-fork, without the thumb, is the best.
1854 Notes & Queries 1st Ser. 9 385/1 Three kinds..: the weasel, the stoat or stump, and the mousehunt or mousehunter, which is also called the thumb from its diminutive size.
1869 S. T. Davenport in Eng. Mech. 31 Dec. 377/2 Filling in the separate colours [in coloured printing]..by small inking-rubbers, known as thumbs and fingers.
1901 Chronicle 25 Oct. (E.D.D., Staffs.) ‘Tot’, a small mug, that held a quartern, sometimes also called a thumb.
1904 Science 20 May 803 (Cent. Dict. Suppl.) The extremely acute ‘thumbs’ and pinnacles which surmount the trap plateau of different parts of Greenland.
4. As a measure (also more fully, thumb's breadth): The breadth of the thumb, taken as equal to an inch.‘Formerly it was usual to allow a “thumb” in addition to each yard (of cloth, etc.) measured; this is still the practice in the cloth trade.’ ( N.E.D.)
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > measurement > measurement of length > [noun] > units of length or distance > breadth of thumb
thumb1622
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Poulcée, an inch, or inch-measure; the breadth of a thumbe.]
1622 G. de Malynes Consuetudo 52 A thumbe or Inch is 6 Graines or Barleycornes.
1634 R. Sanderson Serm. II. (1 Sam. xii. 3) §29. 293 False weights, false measures, false thumbs, false lights, false marks.
1711 Act 10 Anne c. 16 §4 One Table..with the Length of a Yard nailed or marked thereupon; to which shall be added one Inch more, which shall be used instead of that which is commonly called a Thumb's Breadth.
1812 J. Smyth Pract. of Customs ii. 113 The practice of allowing what is termed a Thumb [of linen] is now discontinued by the Board's order [8th May, 1806].
5. Phrases.† b. to bring (a person) above the thumb, to turn over the thumb, to get or have under one's control; cf. ‘to twist round one's finger’. Obsolete.† d. to hit (†cross) one over (of, on) the thumbs, to punish or reprove sharply, ‘rap one's knuckles’.† f. under (the) thumb, secretly, confidentially. Obsolete.
a. thumb of gold, a golden thumb, miller's thumb: in reference either to the alleged dishonesty of millers or to the lucrative character of their trade.
ΚΠ
c1405 (c1387–95) G. Chaucer Canterbury Tales Prol. (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 565 Wel koude he [sc. the miller] stelen corn and tollen thryes And yet he hadde a thombe of gold perdee.]
1576 G. Gascoigne Steele Glas (1868) 79 When smithes shoe horses, as they would be shod, When millers toll not with a golden thumbe.
1678 J. Ray Coll. Eng. Prov. (ed. 2) 176 An honest miller hath a golden thumb.
1876 J. H. Ewing Jan of Windmill xxxii Was 'ee ever in a mill? 'ee seems to have a miller's thumb.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > control > [verb (transitive)] > have complete control over
windc1374
to bring (a person) above the thumb1469
to have to mastery1480
to have at one's beck1530
to turn and wind1557
to bring any one to, or have him at, one's bent1575
to turn over the thumb1603
to lead in a stringc1616
to hold at school1647
to wind (a person, etc.) round one's (little) finger1698
to twirl (a person) round one's finger1748
to twist (a person) round one's finger1780
to play with ——1827
to have (one) on toast1886
to have (got) by the balls1918
to have the wood onc1926
1469 J. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 544 Thow thou can begyll the Dwk of Norffolk, and bryng hym abow[t] the thombe as thow lyst, I let the wet thow shalt not do me so.
?1577 J. Northbrooke Spiritus est Vicarius Christi: Treat. Dicing 98 The gaine gotten by this playe at Dyce, where all is gotten with a trice ouer the thumbe.
1603 T. Dekker 1603: Wonderfull Yeare sig. F4 She would haue tickled them, and turned them ouer the thumbs.
c. one's fingers all thumbs (etc.): said of a person who is clumsy or wanting in dexterity.
ΚΠ
1546 J. Heywood Dialogue Prouerbes Eng. Tongue ii. v. sig. H Whan he should get ought, eche fynger is a thumbe.
1870 Echo 16 Nov. Your uneducated man is all thumbs, as the phrase runs; and what education does for him is to supply him with clever fingers.
1872 Routledge's Every Boy's Ann. 155/2 Whose fingers were reported..to be ‘all thumbs’.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disapproval > rebuke or reproof > rebuke or reprove [verb (transitive)]
threac897
threapc897
begripea1000
threata1000
castea1200
chaste?c1225
takec1275
blame1297
chastya1300
sniba1300
withnima1315
undernima1325
rebukec1330
snuba1340
withtakea1340
reprovec1350
chastisea1375
arate1377
challenge1377
undertake1377
reprehenda1382
repreync1390
runta1398
snapea1400
underfoc1400
to call to account1434
to put downc1440
snebc1440
uptakec1440
correptc1449
reformc1450
reprise?c1450
to tell (a person) his (also her, etc.) own1450
control1451
redarguec1475
berisp1481
to hit (cross) one over (of, on) the thumbs1522
checkc1530
admonish1541
nip1548
twig?1550
impreve1552
lesson1555
to take down1562
to haul (a person) over the coals1565
increpate1570
touch1570
school1573
to gather up1577
task1580
redarguate?1590
expostulate1592
tutor1599
sauce1601
snip1601
sneap1611
to take in tax1635
to sharp up1647
round1653
threapen1671
reprimand1681
to take to task1682
document1690
chapter1693
repulse1746
twink1747
to speak to ——1753
haul1795
to pull up1799
carpet1840
rig1841
to talk to1860
to take (a person) to the woodshed1882
rawhide1895
to tell off1897
to tell (someone) where he or she gets off1900
to get on ——1904
to put (a person) in (also into) his, her place1908
strafe1915
tick1915
woodshed1935
to slap (a person) down1938
sort1941
bind1942
bottle1946
mat1948
ream1950
zap1961
elder1967
1522 Skelton Thwartyng ouer thom [see thwart v. 2].
1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry VII f. xxxiii In the later ende of hys oracion, he a litle rebuked the lady Margaret and hyt her of [ Grafton on] the thombes.
1553 T. Wilson Arte Rhetorique (1580) 3 The Philosopher..did hit a yong man ouer the Thumbes verie handsomely, for vsyng ouer old, and ouer straunge woordes.
1553 T. Wilson Arte Rhetorique (1580) 137 I haue knowen some so hitte of the thumbes, that thei could not tell..whether [etc.].
1591 R. Greene Farewell to Folly sig. F3v Peratio..thought to crosse Benedetto ouer the thumbs.
1594 T. Lodge & R. Greene Looking Glasse sig. B2 Well said Smith, that crost him ouer the thumbs.
e. (a) to bite one's thumbs, as an indication of anger or vexation; (b) to bite the thumb at, as an insult: see bite v. Phrases 2a.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > hold in contempt [verb (transitive)] > express contempt of > by gesture
finger-point1563
to bite the thumb at1573
fig1600
tweak1604
to make horns at1607
rump1737
to snap one's fingers at1806
to give (a person) the finger1874
scuff1897
the mind > emotion > suffering > state of annoyance or vexation > be annoyed or vexed [verb (intransitive)] > exhibit annoyance
to bite one's thumbs1573
to bless oneself1615
the mind > emotion > anger > manifestation of anger > show anger [verb (intransitive)] > other manifestations of anger
to bite one's thumbs1573
1573 in J. Cranstoun Satirical Poems Reformation (1891) I. xlii. 266 The Clerk was like to byte his thowmis.
1596 T. Lodge Wits Miserie 23 Giuing me the Fico with his thombe in his mouth.]
1597 W. Shakespeare Romeo & Juliet i. i. 40 As I goe by ile bite my thumbe, which is disgrace enough if they suffer it. View more context for this quotation
1608 T. Dekker Dead Tearme sig. Divv What shouldering, what Iustling, what Ieering, what byting of Thumbs to beget quarels.
a1635 T. Randolph Muses Looking-glasse iii. iii. 49 in Poems (1638) Daggs, and Pistolls! To bite his thumb at me?
1670 G. Havers tr. G. Leti Il Cardinalismo di Santa Chiesa ii. ii. 158 The Spaniards were nettled, and bit their thumbs..in private.
1863 R. Chambers Bk. of Days I. 358/2 It is very probable that..the act of biting the thumb was not so much a gesture of insulting contempt as a threat.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > secrecy, concealment > [adverb] > in confidence
under the rose1546
under (the) thumb1577
sub sigillo1623
sub rosa1654
between you and me and the bed-post1830
between (or betwixt) you (and) me and the gatepost1871
under one's hat1885
between you and me and the lamp-post1919
off the record1920
cagily1926
1577 R. Stanyhurst Hist. Irelande iii. 90/2 in R. Holinshed Chron. I Diuerse other secrete vnderminers, who wrought so cunningly vnder the thumbe..as if Kyldare had prospered,..theyr malice would not haue bene in maner suspected.
1596 J. Dalrymple tr. J. Leslie Hist. Scotl. (1888) I. 171 This consuetude..was, as we vse to speik, vndir thoume stil reteined.
1693 T. Urquhart & P. A. Motteux tr. F. Rabelais 3rd Bk. Wks. xxxvi. 299 Privily and under Thumb.
g. under the thumb of, entirely at the disposal or direction of, completely subservient to.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > subjection > in or into subjection [phrase] > completely subservient to
under the thumb of1753
1753 S. Richardson Hist. Sir Charles Grandison IV. xxix. 181 She..is obliged to be silent. I have her under my thumb.
1809 B. H. Malkin tr. A. R. Le Sage Adventures Gil Blas III. vii. xiii. 174 Authors..are under the thumb of booksellers and players.
1888 A. Jessopp Coming of Friars ii. 65 The lord was a petty king, having his subjects very much under his thumb.
h. (a) In expressions referring to the use of the thumb by the spectators in the ancient amphitheatre, to indicate approbation or the opposite: see quot. 1880; (b) in modern use (with significance the reverse of that in the ancient amphitheatre): thumbs down, thumbs up, gestures made with the fingers closed and the thumb pointing vertically downwards (indicating disapproval or rejection) or upwards (as a sign of approval, acceptance, encouragement, etc.); also attributive and figurative.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > indication > gesturing or gesture > hand gesture > [noun] > thumb gesture
thumbs down1906
thumbs up1917
1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World II. xxviii. ii. 297 To bend or bow downe the thumbes when wee give assent unto a thing, or doe favour any person.
1693 J. Dryden tr. Juvenal in J. Dryden et al. tr. Juvenal Satires iii. 35 Where..With Thumbs bent back, they popularly kill.
1880 C. T. Lewis & C. Short Lat. Dict. at Pollex To close down the thumb (premere) was a sign of approbation; to extend it (vertere, convertere; pollex infestus) a sign of disapprobation.
1887 R. Garnett Life Carlyle iv They had unanimously turned their thumbs up. ‘Sartor’, the publisher acquainted him, ‘excites universal disapprobation’.
1906 R. Kipling Puck of Pook's Hill 180 We're finished men—thumbs down against both of us.
1907 R. Y. Tyrrell in Academy 9 Mar. 234/1 ‘Thumbs down’ means ‘spare him..’: the signal for death was ‘thumbs up’.
1917 A. G. Empey Over Top 311 Thumbs up, Tommy's expression which means ‘everything is fine with me’.
1929 A. C. Edington & C. Edington Studio Murder Myst. iii. 26 The irrevocable ‘thumbs down’ on a lovely female actor, because certain shady pages in her past had been turned to the light.
1939 War Illustr. 4 Nov. p. iii/1 French peasants now return the ‘thumbs up’ gesture with which they are greeted by British troops on their way to the front.
1946 Sunday Disp. 8 Sept. 1/2 He ran from his machine giving the thumbs-up sign.
1951 Sport 7 Jan. 16/3 The London team has been given the thumbs down sign by a meeting of 1st division promoters.
1951 S. Spender World within World v. 275 Our chief comedian was Buckfast... Everything about him suggested a ‘thumbs up’ attitude.
1954 R. Sutcliff Eagle of Ninth iii. 27 He laughed, and made the ‘thumbs up’ to his troops, calling ‘Well done, lads!’
1961 Guardian 25 Mar. 6/7 The Chancellor of the Exchequer's thumbs-down to a National Theatre.
1967 Technol. Week 95/2 Giving a final ‘thumbs up’ on the rocket's readiness.
1971 Sunday Times (Johannesburg) 28 Mar. 5/1 She said the thumbs-down vote was not unanimous.
1976 Scotsman 25 Nov. 3/7 The market yesterday gave Sir Hugh the thumbs-up. The Fraser shares went up 3p to 58p on the report, which was apparently better than expected.
1979 R. Fiennes Hell on Ice i. 14 Both drivers gave a ‘thumbs up’.
1982 Daily Tel. 5 Mar. 17/1 (heading) Baldwin statue gets thumbs down from Foot.
i. to get one's thumb out of (a person's) mouth, to escape from, to get out of the clutches of. †the finger next one's thumb, one's closest friend. So †to be finger and thumb, to be on intimate terms. †a thumb under the girdle: an expression denoting reserve or unsociableness. †to a cow's thumb, exactly, perfectly, to a hair. there's my thumb (Scottish), in asseveration, in allusion to the practice of licking the thumb in sealing a bargain; see thumb-licking n. at Compounds 5. above one's thumb (Scottish), beyond one's reach or ability. to fash one's thumb (Scottish), to put oneself out, to worry or concern oneself. to clap, put, or keep the thumb on (Scottish), to keep secret. to whistle on one's thumb (Scottish): cf. to pipe in an ivy-leaf at ivy-leaf n. a. as easy as kiss my thumb. to have a green thumb: see green thumb n. at green adj. and n.1 Compounds 1d(a). to stick out like a sore thumb: see sore adj.1 9e. See also rule of thumb n. and adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > safety > escape > escape from [verb (transitive)] > escape from the clutches of
slip1390
to clap, put, or keep the thumb on1481
to make a loose from1669
slip1898
the mind > emotion > love > friendliness > [noun] > friend > close or intimate friend > one's closest friend
the finger next one's thumb1481
bestie1991
the world > action or operation > behaviour > bad behaviour > discourtesy > [phrase] > not affable
at (the) staves end (also staff-endc1374
a thumb under the girdle1607
the mind > emotion > love > friendliness > be friendly [verb (intransitive)] > be good friends > be on intimate terms
to be finger and thumb1736
the world > action or operation > difficulty > practical impossibility > [phrase] > beyond one's powers to do or attain
above one's thumb1766
above one's bend1835
no can do1868
beyond one's grasp1871
the mind > emotion > suffering > state of being upset or perturbed > worry > anxiety > make oneself anxious [verb (reflexive)]
vex?a1425
to fash one's thumb1786
ruck1874
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > hiding, concealing from view > keeping from knowledge > keep quiet about [phrase]
to keep or hold (a matter) counsel (later in counsela1400
to keep secret1399
to keep (something) dark1532
to draw a veil over1582
not to tell one's shirt1586
to keep one's (own) counsel1604
to put (also keep) in one's pocketa1616
to name no names1692
to make a secret of1738
to keep (‥) snug1778
to clap, put, or keep the thumb on1825
to wash one's dirty linen at home, in public1867
to hold back1956
to sweep (also brush, kick, etc.) (something) under the rug1956
to get it off one's chest1961
to sweep (or push) (something) under the carpet1963
1481 W. Caxton tr. Hist. Reynard Fox (1970) 47 I shal by my wille neuer more come in the kynges daunger, I haue now goten my thombe out of his mouth.
1578 J. Lyly Euphues f. 18v In that thou crauest my aide, assure thy selfe I wil be the finger next the thumbe.
1607 T. Walkington Optick Glasse 130 Wee count a melancholicke man..the aqua-fortis of merry company, a thumb vnder the girdle.
1614 T. Overbury et al. Characters in Wife now Widdow sig. E3v They call the thombe vnder the girdle grauitie.
1681 Heraclitus Ridens 1 Nov. 1/1 Let him alone, he'l trim their Whiskers, and comb their Perukes for them to a Cows thumb.
1722 A. Ramsay Tale Three Bonnets iii. 23 There's my Thumb That while I breath I'll ne'er beguile ye.
1736 N. Bailey et al. Dictionarium Britannicum (ed. 2) They are Finger and Thumb, that is, they are so great together, there is no parting them.
1766 A. Nicol Poems Several Subj. 59 Your match is nane aboon your thumb.
1786 R. Burns Poems 30 Speak out an' never fash your thumb.
1818 W. Scott Heart of Mid-Lothian vi, in Tales of my Landlord 2nd Ser. II. 130 We'll leave Mr. Sharpitlaw to whistle on his thumb.
1825 J. Jamieson Etymol. Dict. Sc. Lang. Suppl. (at cited entry) To Put or Clap the Thoum on any thing, to conceal it carefully,..keep it secret.
1838 W. Bell Dict. Law Scotl. Licking of Thumbs, a symbolical mode of indicating that a bargain has been concluded.
1891 A. J. Munby Vulgar Verses 101 I lay it's as easy as kiss-my-thumb, For to have my way wi' her.
Compounds
General attributive. C1. Simple attributive.
thumb-bone n.
ΚΠ
c1480 (a1400) St. John Baptist 882 in W. M. Metcalfe Legends Saints Sc. Dial. (1896) II. 248 A-pon þe autere scho saw ly as a thoume-bane propirly.
thumb-breadth n.
ΚΠ
1846 R. Browning Let. 20 July You can't write ‘so many lines a day’ any more than you can paint a picture by thumb-breadths.
thumb-joint n.
thumb-knuckle n.
ΚΠ
1869 R. D. Blackmore Lorna Doone I. ii. 15 The Lord be with thee, Jan, and turn thy thumb-knuckle inwards.
thumb-unction n.
ΚΠ
1826 R. Southey Vindiciæ Ecclesiæ Anglicanæ 497 Among all my books there is no other which bears such marks of thumb-unction.
C2. In names of objects of comparatively diminutive size.
thumb-book n.
ΚΠ
1715 M. Davies Εἰκων Μικρο-βιβλικὴ 77 A little Thumb-Book, or Pamphlet, call'd, ‘The Office of the Virgin Mary’.
thumb-brush n.
thumb-wren n.
ΚΠ
1844 Zoologist 2 511 Common wren, ‘Thumb-wren’, Troglodytes europœus.
C3. In names of mechanical devices operated by the thumb, or of parts on which the thumb presses in grasping, etc.
thumb-catch n.
ΚΠ
1844 H. Stephens Bk. of Farm I. 139 2 shutters..to open on hinges, and fasten inside with a thumb-catch.
thumb-cock n.
thumb-ferule n.
ΚΠ
1826 Sporting Mag. 18 326 The cap and the thumb-ferrel on the four-horse whips.
thumb-hole n.
ΚΠ
1859 T. J. Gullick & J. Timbs Painting 199 The ‘thumb-hole’ is, however, of recent introduction, and replaced projecting handles.
1902 Daily Chron. 24 Jan. 5/1 I was worrying about that palette of yours. Couldn't you have the thumb-hole in it padded?
thumb-latch n.
ΚΠ
1761 in Essex Inst. Hist. Coll. (1912) XLVIII. 96 Hinges, thumb latches, hammers.
1801 P. A. Nemnich Waaren-Lexikon ii. 686/2 Thumb latches, Thürklinken mit einem Drücker.
1844 H. Stephens Bk. of Farm II. 167 The outer-door provided with a good thumb-latch, and lock and key.
1883 G. J. Romanes Mental Evol. Animals xx. 351 (note) A cat which jumps at a thumb-latch, and while holding on to the curved handle beneath with one foreleg, depresses the thumb-piece with the other.
thumb-lever n.
thumb-milling n.
ΚΠ
1867 J. Hogg Microscope (ed. 6) i. iii. 204 The teeth answer the triple purposes of thumb-milling, ratchet-stop, and graduation.
thumb-nut n.
ΚΠ
1795 W. Felton Treat. Carriages II. (Gloss.) 236 Thumb Nut or Screw.
thumb-reel n.
ΚΠ
1844 J. T. J. Hewlett Parsons & Widows I. xi. 229 A..trolling-rod, and a large thumb-reel.
thumb-sneck n.
ΚΠ
a1825 R. Forby Vocab. E. Anglia (1830) at Snack A thumb-snack, in which the latch is lifted by pressing the thumb on the broad end of a short lever which moves it.
thumb-switch n.
thumb-wheel n. and adj.
ΚΠ
1967 Electronics 6 Mar. 129/1 High and low limits can be set separately on the comparator by: Dialing thumbwheel switches on the front panel during routine testing [etc.].
1976 Sci. Amer. Jan. 130/3 There are even correcting thumbwheels for feeding in ambient air conditions in order to get standardized results on the digital display; they affect only the fourth digit and beyond.
1980 Nature 1 May p. xxii/2 A continuous rheostat thumbwheel control provides a full range of illumination.
C4. Objective, instrumental, etc.
a.
thumb-sucking n.
ΚΠ
1858 ‘G. Eliot’ Scenes Clerical Life I. 36 Baby is given to the infantine peccadillo of thumb-sucking.
1897 T. C. Allbutt et al. Syst. Med. II. 1039 Finger-nails must be kept short and clean, and thumb-sucking and nail-biting discouraged.
thumb-twiddling n. twiddle v.1 2c.
ΚΠ
1930 Times 26 Mar. 14/1 Conversation about the weather and sport..often degenerates into dreary thumb-twiddling.
1964 in M. McLuhan Understanding Media viii. 78 More aesthetic than thumb-twiddling, less expensive than smoking.
b.
thumb-made adj.
ΚΠ
1844 H. Stephens Bk. of Farm III. 979 It should be tied in bundles or sheaves with thumb-made straw-ropes.
thumb-stained adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > dirtiness > dirt > soiled condition > [adjective] > by thumb-marks
well-thumbed1728
thumbeda1800
bethumbed1839
thumby1900
thumb-stained1934
1934 D. Thomas in New Verse xii. 11 The halves that pierce the pin's point in the air, And prick the thumb-stained heaven through the thimble.
thumb-worn adj.
ΚΠ
1851 H. Melville Moby-Dick liii. 265 She will..let her have some papers..and thumb-worn files.
1863 Ecclesiologist XXIV. 338 The thumb-worn binding..would be enough to scare a fashionable Englishman.
1908 W. Churchill Mr. Crewe's Career xvii Certain thumb-worn schedules were referred to.
C5. See also thumb-band n., etc.† thumb-bolts n. Obsolete (plural) see quot.† thumb-case n. Obsolete a thumb-stall. † thumb-measure n. Obsolete see quot. and cf. 4.
thumb-ball n. the ball of the thumb (ball n.1 12).
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > external parts of body > limb > digit > finger > [noun] > thumb > parts of
ball of the hand?c1475
hill of Mars1578
plain of Mars1653
ball of the thumb1701
thumb-ball1821
thenar eminence1899
1821 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. 8 430 Along his thumb-ball, Will his pen-knife tries.
thumb bird n. a local name for the Goldcrest.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > birds > order Passeriformes (singing) > family Muscicapidae (thrushes, etc.) > subfamily Sylviidae (warbler) > [noun] > genus Regulus > regulus regulus (goldcrest)
yellowbird1625
regulus1750
basilisk1753
marigold bird1772
nettle creeper1772
goldcrest1819
marigold finch1828
kinglet1835
woodcock pilot1871
thumb bird1885
tot-o'er-seas1885
herring spink1906
pope's eye1965
1885 C. Swainson Provinc. Names Brit. Birds 25 Goldcrest (Regulus cristatus)... Miller's thumb (Roxburgh). Thumb bird (Hants).
thumb-bit n. = thumb-bolts n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > animals for food > cut or piece of meat > [noun] > small piece of meat
smatchcock14..
mincing1598
tucet1653
nut1769
taver1808
skewer-piece1832
thumb-bit1847
médaillon1899
medallion1907
1847–78 J. O. Halliwell Dict. Archaic & Provinc. Words Thumb-bit, a piece of meat eaten on bread, so called from the thumb being placed on it. [Cf. thumb-piece n. b.]
thumb-blue n. = thumb-bolts n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > named colours > blue or blueness > blue colouring matter > [noun] > dyes and dyestuffs > indigo > knob of
thumb-blue1858
1858 P. L. Simmonds Dict. Trade Products Thumb-blue, a name for small knobs of indigo used by washerwomen.
ΚΠ
1711 C. Lockyer Acct. Trade India iv. 95 I understand Congas [= cangue] to be Thumbolts.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medical appliances or equipment > surgical supports > [noun] > finger- or thumb-stall
fingerling1440
fingerstall?c1475
thumb-case1598
cot1617
thumb-stall1654
finger-stool1787
finger cot1841
hud1893
1598 A. M. tr. J. Guillemeau Frenche Chirurg. 39 b/2 As touching the thumbe and the fingers, we must haue a thumbcase.
thumb-cleat n. Nautical see quot.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > equipment of vessel > other equipment of vessel > [noun] > cleat or bollard
kevelc1330
cleat1377
bollard1844
belaying-cleat1862
thumb-cleat1867
stag-horn1923
niggerhead1927
1867 W. H. Smyth & E. Belcher Sailor's Word-bk. Thumb-cleat, in shape resembling a thumb.
1886 R. C. Leslie Sea-painter's Log vi. 137 Clumsy thumb-cleats, with more clothes-line twining about them.
thumb-cutter n. an operative who cuts out the thumb-pieces in glove-making.
ΚΠ
1881 Instr. Census Clerks (1885) 76 Glover... Leather Gloves:..Thumb and Fourchette Cutter and Puncher.
thumb-finger n. the thumb.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > external parts of body > limb > digit > finger > [noun] > thumb
thumba700
strongc1300
vice-hand1644
pollex1702
thumby1811
thumb-finger1855
1855 J. Davies Races of Lanc. in Trans. Philol. Soc. 276 (note) A word I have occasionally heard in my boyhood, though now obsolete, thumb-finger.
1906 Westm. Gaz. 11 Aug. 16/1 The inner flight feathers grow first, leaving the thumb finger free until the feathers have grown long enough.
thumb-fingered adj. clumsy, not dexterous (cf. 5c).
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > ability > inability > unskilfulness > [adjective] > clumsy or awkward > clumsy with the hands
handless1483
left-handed1579
butterfingered1615
heavy-handeda1634
thumbless1648
unhandy1669
mutton-fisted1737
two-fisted1774
numb-handed1849
butterfingers1851
buttery-fingered1853
cack-handed1854
Marlborough-handed1893
thumb-fingered1903
thumby1909
ham-handed1918
ham-fisted1928
1903 Med. Rec. 28 Feb. 335 Iridectomy must be skilfully and delicately performed. No thumb-fingered tyro need attempt it with hope of success.
thumb-hand n. dialect the right hand.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > external parts of body > limb > extremities > hand > [noun] > right hand
right handOE
destera1300
right halfc1350
right sidea1382
sword-hand1531
wand-hand1637
pistol hand1702
spear-hand1728
thumb-hand1750
whip hand1806
dexter1814
1750 Student 1 No. 9. 332 The third house of your thumb-hand in Blow-Bladder-Street.
1907 Notes & Queries 10th Ser. VII. 467/1 This remarkable expression..heard in the neighbourhood of Sheffield..‘Ye mun go down there, and keep to t' thomb-hand side’.
thumb-index n. a reference-index consisting of grooves cut in the front edges of the leaves, or formerly of projecting tabs, or margins so cut as to show initial letters or titles, so that any division may be turned to by placing the thumb or finger on the proper initial, etc.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > matter of book > [noun] > index
repertory1542
elench1570
index1580
Yellow Pages1871
word index1880
thumb-index1903
thumb-register1904
1903 Periodical July 16 The OxfordThumb-Index Bible is the latest novelty.
thumb-kissing n. the kissing of the thumb with which the book is held instead of the book itself in taking an oath.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > agreement > promise > [noun] > vow or oath > vowing or administering an oath
swearinga1400
vowinga1400
devouation1428
avowingc1450
avowry1587
objuration1623
administration1625
nuncupation1625
nuncupating1679
swearinga1708
attestation1812
thumb-kissing1833
1833 W. Carleton Traits & Stories Irish Peasantry 2nd Ser. I. 277 Thumb kissing is another feature in Paddy's adroitness.
thumb-knot n. = overhand knot n. at overhand adv. and adj. Compounds.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > fastening > binding or tying > a bond, tie, or fastening > [noun] > knot > overhand knot
thumb-knot1795
overhand knot1831
overhanded knot1852
1795 C. Hutton Math. & Philos. Dict. at Knot A Thumb knot..the simplest of all. It is used..by taylors &c. at the end of their thread.
thumb-lancet n. the usual form of lancet, having a broad two-edged blade.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medical appliances or equipment > surgical instruments > [noun] > knife, lancet, or scalpel
blood iron1401
phlebotomec1425
lancentc1440
lancet1474
phlebotomy1477
lancer1537
fleam1552
racer1570
lancelet1574
lance1575
lance-knife1610
catling1617
incision-knife1617
bistort1655
scalpel1742
bistoury1748
dissector1841
scarificator1879
thumb-lancet1903
1903 Med. Rec. 30 May 853 At a time (1862) when the thumb-lancet was hardly considered a necessity.
thumb-licking n. Scottish the licking and joining of thumbs by the parties concerned in token of the completion of a bargain.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > agreement > [noun] > involving the joining of hands, etc.
handbanda1400
handfast1568
thumb-licking1773
1773 J. Erskine Inst. Law Scotl. II. iii. iii. §5. 447 Decrees are yet extant in our records.. sustaining sales upon summonses of thumb-licking, upon this medium, That the parties had licked thumbs at finishing the bargain.
thumb-lock n. (a) a kind of lock which is opened by pressing with the thumb; (b) plural = thumbscrew n. 2.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > punishment > torture > instrument or place of torture > [noun] > thumb-screw
pilliwinks1397
screw1663
thumbikins1684
finger stocks1686
finger pillory1801
thumb-lock1801
thumbscrew1816
society > occupation and work > equipment > building and constructing equipment > fastenings > [noun] > lock > other types of lock
inlock1488
treble lock1680
French lock1787
ringlock1789
thumb-lock1801
bar-lock1828
permutation lock1835
check-lock1850
pin lock1851
time lock1858
garret-lock1860
dead lock1866
seal-lock1871
dead-latch1874
Bramah-lock1875
cylinder lock1878
police lock1910
ziplock1956
solenoid lock1976
D-lock1990
1801 P. A. Nemnich Waaren-Lexikon ii. 686/2 Thumb locks, Feder-Thürschlösser die mit einem Schlüssel ohne Bart, aufgedrückt werden.
1882 J. Taylor Sc. Covenanters 88 They carried with them..iron fetters, and an instrument of torture called thumb-locks.
Categories »
thumb-loose n. [loose n.1 1] Archery a method of releasing the bow-string with the thumb: cf. thumb-ring n. c.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > measurement > measurement of length > [noun] > units of length or distance > breadth of thumb > left between every yard in measuring
thumb-measure1611
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues at Süant A poulce süant, by ynch, or thumbe-measure; the breadth of a thumbe giuen betweene euerie yard in measuring.
thumb-mould n. (a) (see quot. 1906); (b) a small mould usually having designs in intaglio, into which the clay is pressed with the thumb in making ornaments for the decoration of ware ( Cent. Dict., Suppl. 1909).
ΚΠ
1906 G. F. Goodchild & C. F. Tweney Technol. & Sci. Dict. 768/2 Thumb Mould (Join.), a moulding used on the edge of tables.
thumb-pad n. a pad covering the inner metacarpal bone in some batrachians ( Cent. Dict. 1891).
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > amphibians > order Anura or Salienta (frogs and toads) > [noun] > member of > parts of
parotoid1871
brow-spot1875
sphenethmoid bone1875
suprascapula1888
thumb-pad1965
1965 J. Lee & F. Knowles Animal Hormones iii. 53 At sexual maturity in male frogs (for example Rana temporaria) there is hypertrophy of the muscles of the forearms and thickening of the thumb-pads.
thumb paper n. U.S. a paper or card inserted in a book at the bottom of a page to protect it from thumb-marks.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > parts of book > [noun] > paper to protect from thumb-marks
thumb paper1843
1843 ‘R. Carlton’ New Purchase I. xxx. 286 To have used..any other than the thumb-paper just named, would have been considerably worse than ridiculous.
1888 E. Eggleston Graysons viii. 76 Fervid little love-notes..were folded like the ‘thumb-papers’ that served to protect their books.
1942 F. Warnick Dial. Garrett County, Maryland 15 Thumb-paper,..a small piece of paper used to protect the pages.
thumb piano n. Music = sansa n.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > musical instrument > other musical instruments > [noun] > sansa
ambira1625
marimba1856
sansa1864
marimbula1931
likembe1948
mbira1948
thumb piano1952
lamellophone1953
rumba box1953
kalimba1968
1952 R. A. Waterman in Proc. 29th Internat. Congress Americanists 1949 II. 212 Melodic instruments..are utilized for their percussive value, as in the case of ‘thumb pianos’, [etc.].
1974 Encycl. Brit. Macropædia I. 250/1 The mbira is also known as..thumb piano, and by other regional names. The common term sansa is not correct; it is not found in Africa.
thumb pick n. Music a kind of plectrum.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > musical instrument > stringed instruments > [noun] > plectrum
nailOE
pointela1522
quill1552
plectre1603
plectrum1608
fescue?1624
pick1889
fingerpick1891
thumb pick1969
1969 John Edwards Mem. Foundation Q. 5 i. 13 Riley used a thumb pick to achieve the heavy bass runs.
1973 Advocate-News (Barbados) 24 Feb. 3/6 (advt.) Attention all musicians... Just arrived:..Picks Finger Picks Thumb Picks.
thumb-pin n. = thumbtack n.
thumb-piston n. = piston n. 3a.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > musical instrument > keyboard instrument > organ > [noun] > stop-knob
stop1585
stop-handle1858
piston1873
stop-knob1887
piston knob1890
thumb-piston1904
speaking stop1938
1904 Restoration Durham Cathedral Organ (Harrison & Harrison Ltd.) The Thumb-Pistons will be of solid ivory.
thumb plane n. (see quot. 1888).
ΚΠ
1888 Lockwood's Dict. Mech. Engin. Thumb Plane, a small plane about four or five inches long,..used for small work in general.
thumb position n. in violoncello playing, a position in which the thumb serves as a movable ‘nut’.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > playing instruments > playing stringed instrument > [noun] > positions in cello playing
thumb position1889
1889 E. J. Payne in Grove Dict. Music IV. 300/2 [article Violoncello-playing] At present..the use of the thumb positions is more restricted.
thumb-pot n. (a) a flowerpot of the smallest size; (b) see quot. 1885.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > gardening > equipment and buildings > [noun] > flower-pot or tub
garden pot1592
flowerpot1598
pot1615
forty-eight1808
jardinière1841
thumb-pot1851
flower-box1876
window box1895
planter1948
society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > clay compositions > baked clay > pottery or ceramics > [noun] > Roman
thumb-pot1851
sigillata1903
terra sigillata1903
1851 Beck's Florist Dec. 267 As soon as they are sufficiently large to handle..pot them singly in small thumb-pots.
1885 M. Collins in Eng. Illustr. Mag. 687/2 [Roman pottery] Many are still called ‘thumb-pots’, the sides being indented with the potter's thumb.
thumbprint n. the impression or mark of the inner surface of the top joint of the thumb, made with ink or otherwise upon a receptive surface; also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > indication > marking > a mark > trace or vestige > [noun] > fingerprint
finger marka1661
fingerprint1737
finger impression1856
thumbprint1900
print1914
latent fingerprint1919
lift1951
1900 Literature 15 Dec. 486/2 The thumb-print of Kangali Charan..was compared with the magnified lines of the smudge. Identification was instant.
1906 Daily Chron. 2 May 7/5 To-day the photograph of his thumb prints was received from London. They exactly tally with Johnson's thumb-prints made here.
1967 G. Steiner Lang. & Silence 66 Rimbaud left his thumb-print on language, on the name and nature of the modern poet.
1979 Time 30 July 12 Caddell's thumb-prints also were on the energy speech that Carter delivered to the nation Sunday after returning to Washington.
thumb-printing n. the use of ‘thumbs and fingers’ (see finger n. 7) in the aquatint process.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > printmaking > engraving > intaglio printing > [noun] > aquatint > techniques
thumb-printing1869
sand grain1904
sugar aquatint1962
1869 S. T. Davenport in Eng. Mech. 31 Dec. 377/2 This was effected by small inking-rubbers, known as thumbs and fingers, and the printing was called thumb-printing.
thumb-puncher n. an operative who cuts out the thumb-pieces in glove-making.
ΚΠ
1881 Instr. Census Clerks (1885) 76 Glover... Leather Gloves:..Thumb and Fourchette Cutter and Puncher.
1921 Dict. Occup. Terms (1927) § 429 Thumb puncher.
thumb-read v. (transitive) to read cursorily; to turn the pages of (a book) with the thumb in glancing through it.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > reading > [verb (transitive)] > skim or browse or skip
skip1526
launch1570
to run over1577
rufflea1631
leaf1663
to run through1670
to dip into1682
skim1739
thumb-read1825
browse1903
thumb1930
riffle1938
riff1942
skim-read1954
skip-read1977
1825 R. Southey Let. to H. Hill 22 Mar. I had merely thumb-read his book as a whole.
thumb-register n. = thumb-index n.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > matter of book > [noun] > index
repertory1542
elench1570
index1580
Yellow Pages1871
word index1880
thumb-index1903
thumb-register1904
1904 C. Wordsworth & H. Littlehales Old Service-bks. Eng. Church 277 A kind of book-marker or thumb-register, for finding the places in a book read in choir.
thumb-rule n. = rule of thumb n. and adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > endeavour > trial or experiment > [noun] > empiricism > method of
rule of thumba1658
thumb-rule1906
1906 Westm. Gaz. 2 July 2/2 The effect of this missionary work..is not to be measured by any thumb-rule.
thumb-stick n. a tall walking-stick with a forked thumb-rest at the top.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > support > [noun] > that which supports > something to lean on > staff to lean on > other types of walking stick
pikeOE
bourdona1300
pickc1330
pickstaff1356
pikestaff?a1500
gribble1578
supplejack1748
crutch-stick1780
spear-stick1801
kebbie1816
Penang lawyer1827
alpenstock1829
thumb-stick1945
1945 Sun (Baltimore) 25 Oct. 4/3 Believing the thumbstick to be mightier than the sword, the Boy Scouts are going to lend a hand in the formidable task of re-educating German youth.
1974 R. Adams Shardik xi. 79 Bel-ka-Trazet walked with the help of a long thumb-stick which Kelderek remembered to have seen him trimming the evening before.
1982 Church Times 2 Apr. (Advt. Feature) p. iv/4 Whether it is..a military swagger cane, a stick you have whittled, a Shepherd's crook or a thumb stick from Scouting days.
thumb-sucker n. (a) a child who habitually sucks his thumb; (b) Journalists' slang (see quots. 1974 for thumb piano n., 1980).
ΘΚΠ
the world > people > person > child > [noun]
wenchelc890
childeOE
littleOE
littlingOE
hired-childc1275
smalla1300
brolla1325
innocentc1325
chickc1330
congeonc1330
impc1380
faunt1382
young onec1384
scionc1390
weea1400
birdc1405
chickenc1440
enfaunta1475
small boyc1475
whelp1483
burden1490
little one1509
brat?a1513
younkerkin1528
kitling1541
urchin1556
loneling1579
breed1586
budling1587
pledge?1587
ragazzo1591
simplicity1592
bantling1593
tadpole1594
two-year-old1594
bratcheta1600
lambkin1600
younker1601
dandling1611
buda1616
eyas-musketa1616
dovelinga1618
whelplinga1618
puppet1623
butter printa1625
chit1625
piggy1625
ninnyc1626
youngster1633
fairya1635
lap-child1655
chitterling1675
squeaker1676
cherub1680
kid1690
wean1692
kinchin1699
getlingc1700
totum17..
charity-child1723
small girl1734
poult1739
elfin1748
piggy-wiggy1766
piccaninny1774
suck-thumb18..
teeny1802
olive1803
sprout1813
stumpie1820
sexennarian1821
totty1822
toddle1825
toddles1828
poppet1830
brancher1833
toad1836
toddler1837
ankle-biter1840
yarkera1842
twopenny1844
weeny1844
tottykins1849
toddlekins1852
brattock1858
nipper1859
sprat1860
ninepins1862
angelet1868
tenas man1870
tad1877
tacker1885
chavvy1886
joey1887
toddleskin1890
thumb-sucker1891
littlie1893
peewee1894
tyke1894
che-ild1896
kiddo1896
mother's bairn1896
childling1903
kipper1905
pick1905
small1907
God forbid1909
preadolescent1909
subadolescent1914
toto1914
snookums1919
tweenie1919
problem child1920
squirt1924
trottie1924
tiddler1927
subteen1929
perisher1935
poopsie1937
pre-schooler1937
pre-teen1938
pre-teener1940
juvie1941
sprog1944
pikkie1945
subteenager1947
pre-teenager1948
pint-size1954
saucepan lid1960
rug rat1964
smallie1984
bosom-child-
society > communication > journalism > journalist > [noun] > columnist
thumb-sucker1891
columnist1920
1891 ‘M. Twain’ tr. Hoffman Slovenly Peter (1935, Ltd. Ed.) 25 Story of the thumb~sucker.
1964 J. M. Argyle Psychol. & Social Probl. ix. 121 There is also some evidence that children who have little opportunity for sucking, either at the breast or at a dummy, are more likely to become thumb-suckers.
1974 S. Alsop Stay of Execution i. 103 Walter Lippmann wrote the best straight think-pieces, or thumb-suckers as they are called in the trade, of any journalist of our time.
1980 N.Y. Times Mag. 11 May 12/4 Slurs like ‘paper pusher’ for bureaucrat, or ‘thumbsucker’ for columnist.
thumbtack n. a tack with a broad head, which may be pushed in with the thumb; North American = drawing pin n.; also as v. transitive.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > industry > working with tools or equipment > fastening > fasten [verb (transitive)] > with nails > with specific type
spike1624
treenail1626
spike1700
sprig1712
brad1794
clinker1824
thumbtack1884
toe-nail1900
society > occupation and work > equipment > building and constructing equipment > fastenings > [noun] > nail > with flat head
tack1574
clasp-nail1721
flat nail1850
thumbtack1884
1884 I. M. Rittenhouse Maud (1939) 278 [He] coolly left me to put the thumb-tacks in my picture by myself.
1908 Daily Chron. 27 Feb. 8/1 Fasten all securely to a flat surface..with pins or thumb tacks.
1951 R. Mayer Artist's Handbk. (new ed.) v. 187 A much better way to preserve unstretched pictures..is to thumb~tack them face down to sheets of wallboard.
thumbtacked adj.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > industry > working with tools or equipment > fastening > [adjective] > with nails
nailedeOE
nailfast1428
clenchedc1440
nailed-on1683
toed1877
thumbtacked1966
1966 D. Francis Flying Finish ii. 24 Round the walls hung framed charts.., a thumb~tacked weather report.
1975 N.Y. Times 14 Sept. x. 1/2 Thumbtacked to the bulletin board was a color snapshot.
Derivatives
thumb-like adj.
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1895 S. S. Buckman in Pop. Sci. Monthly Jan. 376 The big toe..reveals its former thumblike use.
Draft additions June 2015
thumb drive n. (a) a mechanism that is operated by the thumb; (b) Computing (a proprietary name for) a USB flash drive, esp. a small one in the shape of a long and relatively flat rectangular prism; cf. memory stick n. at memory n. Compounds 2.
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1973 U.S. Patent 3,726,497 (A) 3 A threaded pair of parallel horizontal shafts..which are rotatably driven by a thumb drive gear wheel..for adjusting the control handles laterally.
1989 U.S. Patent 4,885,436 (A) 4 Thumb drive provides a pair of surfaces against which the user's thumb may be placed when rotating actuator in insertion direction and retraction direction, respectively.
2000 Business Wire (Nexis) 25 Feb. 208/2 The Thumb Drive is a technological breakthrough in the memory-data companion IT sector. Measuring only 45 mm in length and 30g in weight, the Thumb Drive operates on the ‘plug-and-play’ system using USB Version 1.0.
2013 Vanity Fair Sept. 316/1 The agent noted that the Goldman files were on both the personal computer and the thumb drive he'd taken from Serge at Newark Airport.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1912; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
thumbv.
/θʌm/, U.S. /θəm/ 1. transitive. To feel with or as with the thumb; to handle. †to thumb the belt of, to be in subjection to. Scottish. Obsolete.
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the world > physical sensation > touch and feeling > touching > touching with the hand > touch or feel with the hand [verb (transitive)] > touch or feel with the thumb
thumba1626
bethumb1657
a1626 [implied in: J. Fletcher & W. Rowley Maid in Mill v. ii, in F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Comedies & Trag. (1647) sig. Cccc3v/2 Miller, this is not for your thumming. (at thumbing n.)].
1711 [implied in: J. Puckle Club 22 Gamesters have the top, the peep, eclipse, thumbing. (Note. Securing with the little finger a die on the outside of the box, Ditto with the thumb, when the person play'd with, sits on the right hand.)].
1735 A. Ramsay Addr. Thanks from Society of Rakes 12 They will be forc'd to thumb your Belt At last, and a' knock under.
1765 E. Thompson Meretriciad (ed. 6) 30 None had the art To thumb the guineas.
1894 Daily News 17 Jan. 3/1 The ladies and children..stroke his moist nose..; the men punch his ribs and thumb his brisket.
1898 F. Whitmore in Atlantic Monthly Apr. 501/1 He thumbed an edge-tool like an artist.
2. To play (a wind instrument, an air) with or as with the thumbs; to perform or manipulate clumsily. Also intransitive with it.
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the world > physical sensation > touch and feeling > touching > touching with the hand > touch or feel with the hand [verb (transitive)] > touch or handle awkwardly
pawa1450
thumb1593
fumble1609
thumble1614
to maum and gaum1738
society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > playing instruments > play instrument [verb (transitive)] > play with fingers
toucha1387
finger?1521
strike1565
thumb1593
1593 G. Harvey New Let. Notable Contents C ij b If the Princock must be playing vpon them, that can play vpon his warped sconce, as vpon a tabor, or a fiddle, let himselfe thanke himselfe, if he be kindly thummed.
1641 J. Milton Animadversions 25 If men should ever bee thumming the drone of one plaine Song, it would bee a dull Opiat to the most wakefull attention.
1675 C. Cotton Burlesque upon Burlesque 93 One winds a Horn..Another thumbs it on a Tabor.
1755 S. Johnson Dict. Eng. Lang. Thumb, to handle awkwardly.
3.
a. To soil or wear (esp. a book) with the thumbs in using or handling; hence, to read much or often.
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society > communication > reading > [verb (transitive)] > read much or often
thumb1644
the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > dirtiness > dirt > soiled condition > soil [verb (transitive)] > with finger or thumb
thumb1644
finger mark1868
1644–7 J. Cleveland Char. London Diurnall 1 The Emperick-Divines of the Assembly,..thumbe it accordingly.
1673 R. Leigh Transproser Rehears'd 43 Romances are thumb'd more than St. Thomas.
c1720 M. Prior Female Phaeton 9 Shall I thumb holy books, confin'd With Abigails, forsaken?
1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. iii. 391 Within a week after it had arrived it had been thumbed by twenty families.
1878 E. Arber Pref. to Caxton's Reynard p. xii These early editions were thumbed out of existence.
b. = thumb-read vb. at thumb n. Compounds 5; frequently const. through. Also, to turn (pages) with or as with the thumb in glancing through a book, etc.
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society > communication > reading > [verb (transitive)] > skim or browse or skip
skip1526
launch1570
to run over1577
rufflea1631
leaf1663
to run through1670
to dip into1682
skim1739
thumb-read1825
browse1903
thumb1930
riffle1938
riff1942
skim-read1954
skip-read1977
1930 D. Hammett Maltese Falcon xvi. 186 He took a battered memorandum-book from a vest-pocket, licked his thumb, thumbed pages, and held the book out open to Spade.
1934 Webster's New Internat. Dict. Eng. Lang. thumb..v.,..to run over the pages of, (a book, periodical, newspaper, pamphlet, or the like), as by turning them rapidly with the thumb.
1966 G. Greene Comedians i. v. 140 He sat on the sofa and thumbed through Paris-Match.
1966 S. Smith Frog Prince 37 I dare say he had thumbed a book about it.
1976 J. Archer Not Penny More v. 62 Stephen left his study for the Senior Common Room where he thumbed through the latest copy of Who's Who and found the noble lord.
4.
Thesaurus »
a. To press, smooth, clean, spread, or smear with the thumb.
b. To cover (the touchhole of a cannon) with the thumb; cf. thumb-stall n. d ( Funk's Stand. Dict., 1895.)
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society > armed hostility > military equipment > operation and use of weapons > action of propelling missile > discharge of firearms > management of artillery > operate (artillery) [verb (transitive)] > insert plug in vent
thumb1768
bouche1782
1768 A. Ross Fortunate Shepherdess iii. 112 Honest Jean..thumb'd it [a cutty spoon] round and gae't unto the squire.
1856 J. Ballantine Poems 185 The tither cake, wi' butter thoom'd.
1899 B. Capes Lady of Darkness iv. 220 A seed thumbed in too deep is often choked from sprouting.
1904 Daily Chron. 7 July 4/4 To thumb down the tobacco in his pipe.
c. to thumb one's nose: see nose n. Phrases 1c(c).
5. To seek or get (a ride or lift) in a passing vehicle by signalling with one's thumb the direction in which one hopes to travel (also figurative); to signal to (a driver or vehicle) with the thumb. Also intransitive, to make one's way by thumbing lifts, to hitch-hike. Originally U.S.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > transport > transport or conveyance in a vehicle > riding in a vehicle > ride in a vehicle [verb (intransitive)] > hitch-hike
hitch-hike1923
thumb1932
hitch1959
swamp1964
society > travel > transport > transport or conveyance in a vehicle > riding in a vehicle > ride a vehicle [verb (transitive)] > thumb (a lift)
thumb1932
1932 Sun (Baltimore) 4 Oct. 15/8 He was ‘thumbed’ into picking up two lads.
1933 Sun (Baltimore) 26 Aug. 6/7 New England..is filled with young men and young women who are continually thumbing their way from one camp to another.
1934 Amer. Speech 9 111/1 Those not fortunate enough to possess a car of their own stand by the side of the road and attempt to thumb a ride.
1939 N. Monsarrat This is Schoolroom xii. 250 I thumbed my way across England..spending..four-and-sixpence and walking about thirty miles out of the hundred and fifty.
1944 H. Nicolson Diary 1 May (1967) 369 Eventually an American lorry came along. We thumbed them. They stopped, and jumped off and with many jokes mended the tyre for us.
1952 J. Cannan Body in Beck vii. 135 He had been thumbed for a lift by a desperate man.
1958 Landfall 12 32 When a likely lift came by, Pat would..thumb it with a slow impressive sweep of his arm.
1958 Oxf. Mail 15 Feb. 1/5 Photographed thumbing a lift near Wolverhampton are two..boys..who hitch-hiked to see the Wolves cup-tie with Darlington at Molineux.
1959 News Chron. 14 Aug. 7/5 The only Government-sponsored effort has been a plan to ‘thumb a lift’ in American rockets for British-made instruments.
1960 O. Manning Great Fortune ii. 146 He..had been ‘thumbing’ his way through Galicia when war broke out.
1975 D. Nobbs Death of Reginald Perrin 184 Reggie stood at the entrance to the lay-by and tried to thumb a lift.
1979 Listener 1 Mar. 314/2 Like many students..I had thumbed my way through France.
6. intransitive. To gesture with the thumb; esp. to signal with the thumb in the hope of getting a lift in a passing vehicle.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > indication > gesturing or gesture > hand gesture > [verb (intransitive)] > gesture with thumb
thumb1935
1935 G. Stein Let. Dec. in R. L. White S. Anderson/G. Stein (1972) 99 Yesterday an American described thumbing on the roads.
1951 E. Paul Springtime in Paris (U.K. ed.) xvi. 309 Gilles thumbed over toward the Abbot. ‘His Nibs should have given us the list in advance.’
1955 Times 18 Aug. 10/7 I thumbed for four hours without stopping a single vehicle.
1966 R. Price Generous Man (1967) ii. 142 He turned to Yancey.., thumbing to the house—‘Is that all the house old Rooster can afford?’
1976 N. Thornburg Cutter & Bone viii. 191 He was on the freeway entrance ramp, thumbing with his usual touch of calculated restraint.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1912; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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