thumb
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
That doesn’t require a thumb on the scale against appealing outcomes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
"In Spain, they really appreciate my IQ and quality because at Barca, if you're not technical, if you're not smart, you're going to stand out like a sore thumb."
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
Hopeful return: Third baseman Nolan Arenado suffered an injury to his left thumb Tuesday, the same injury he sustained in late August.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026
One planner’s rule of thumb is to skip net unrealized appreciation on any shares with a basis above 20 cents on the dollar.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026
That was possibly what had cut his forehead, Rowan decided, pushing the soft pad of his thumb against the bump.
From "Rowan of Rin" by Emily Rodda
After each pitch, the host asks audience members to hold up their paddle, which has a green thumbs up and a red thumbs down to indicate whether they agree or disagree.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 30, 2026
The BBC asked Witkoff how the meetings had gone as he was leaving the UN building and he responded with a thumbs up.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
Now she got her thumbs underneath the tape.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
Hispanics gave them the thumbs down, 69% to 31%.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
She carries a sleek black folder of papers and a cell phone in her hand, clicking away with her thumbs.
From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon
Valerie’s career is a long curtsy to declining standards and compromises; her 2014 journey thumbed its nose at the town’s prestige-chasing.
From Salon ● Mar. 26, 2026
In October, I thumbed through snapshots my mother had stashed in albums, envelopes and shoeboxes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 4, 2025
While other kids were popping CDs into their center consoles, Dudelson thumbed through bins of one-dollar records.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 22, 2025
Guests thumbed through the order of service, which one Muslim guest in the pews said was “very helpful” for navigating the Christian ceremony.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 3, 2024
The map was ragged, so thumbed that it had grown as supple as a piece of chamois.
From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote
Those, however, were much more quotidian in nature—slices of pie, humble shoes—and circumvented the traditional gallery-to-collector pipeline, with Oldenburg thumbing his nose at the commercialized art establishment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
The speed of that reversal makes it tempting to see the latest ruling as a district judge thumbing her nose at the high court.
From Slate ● Aug. 31, 2026
It meant there were five changes in all from the matchday squad announced on Monday and surely would have had the New Zealand management thumbing through the regulations of the tour agreement.
From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2026
If you are thumbing through the brochure/paperwork, it will be there in black and white.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 24, 2026
Even though the music’s blaring from a laptop connected to some speakers, she’s over by the CD collection, thumbing through cases.
From "Every Day" by David Levithan
Vocabulary lists containing thumb
Road Home
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Lesson 16
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
