Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

thumbs up

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.69 in modern English

Syllables: thumb-s up
IPA

17

Scrabble Score

8

Letters

2

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A gesture signifying approval or okay; a thumb pointing up out of a fist.

noun

An approval or OK.

Example Sentences

"He smiled and gave a big thumbs up."
"We got the thumbs up to go ahead with the project."

Etymology

Said to refer to the signal of approval or disapproval used by spectators at a Roman amphitheatre, but the directions have been reversed, and the Roman gesture was a bent thumb.

Inflected Forms

thumbs ups (plural) thumbs-up (alternative) thumb up (alternative) thumb-up (alternative)

Phrases

thumbs-up

Frequently Paired Words

👍

Antonyms

thumbs down

Questions

What does thumbs up mean?: A gesture signifying approval or okay; a thumb pointing up out of a fist.
Where does thumbs up come from?: Said to refer to the signal of approval or disapproval used by spectators at a Roman amphitheatre, but the directions have been reversed, and the Roman gesture was a bent thumb.

How to pronounce thumbs up

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “thumbs up”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “thumbs up”.
Repeat and practice — Say “thumbs up” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.