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Definition of thumb noun from the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary

Oxford3000

thumb

noun
/θʌm/ thumb pronunciation American
 
1 the short thick finger at the side of the hand, slightly apart from the other fourShe still sucks her thumb when she's worried.2 the part of a glove that covers the thumbThere's a hole in the thumb.IDIOMS

be all thumbs

to be awkward with your hands so that you drop things or are unable to do something
be all thumbs

a rule of thumb

a practical method of doing or measuring something, usually based on past experience rather than on exact measurement
As a rule of thumb, you should cook a chicken for 20 minutes for each pound of weight.a rule of thumb

stand/stick out like a sore thumb

to be very noticeable in an unpleasant way
The blue building stood out like a sore thumb among the whitewashed villas.If you wear a suit to the party, you'll stand out like a sore thumb.stand out like a sore thumbstick out like a sore thumb

thumbs up/down

used to show that something has been accepted/rejected or that it is/is not a success
Their proposals were given the thumbs down.It looks like it's thumbs up for their latest album. origin In contests in ancient Rome, the public put their thumbs up if they wanted a gladiator to live, and down if they wanted him to be killed.thumbs upthumbs down

twiddle your thumbs

1 to move your thumbs around each other with your fingers joined together2 to do nothing while you are waiting for something to happentwiddle your thumbs

under someone's thumb

(of a person) completely controlled by someoneShe has him under her thumb.under thumb