Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

all thumbs

Cultural  

  1. Clumsy or awkward: “Where plumbing is concerned, Walter is all thumbs.”

all thumbs Idioms  

  1. Physically awkward, especially with respect to the hands, as in When it comes to knitting, Mary is all thumbs. The notion of this idiom derives from a proverb in John Heywood's collection of 1546: “When he should get aught, each finger is a 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.

“I asked J.P. for a scouting report on Frazier as a shortstop and he was all thumbs up, saying he could handle it,” Servais said.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 15, 2022

He’s all thumbs in the exposé “The Teenager Who Hacked Twitter” on a new “The New York Times Presents.”

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 13, 2020

Ponsoldt—who also directed The Spectacular Now and The End of the Tour—has a great feel for intimate conversation, but he’s all thumbs when it comes to The Circle’s attempt at stylized allegory.

From Slate • Apr. 27, 2017

"I just got the final inspections: health, fire, the liquor board, all thumbs up."

From Seattle Times • Mar. 16, 2011

‘Don’t push your luck, brother. Briares has fifty faces; all of them are ugly. He’s got a hundred hands, and he’s still all thumbs around the house.’

From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.