green thumb

American  

noun

1. an exceptional aptitude for gardening or for growing plants successfully.

   Houseplants provide much pleasure for the city dweller with a green thumb.

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green thumb British  

noun

1. Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): green fingers. considerable talent or ability to grow plants

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green thumb Cultural  

1. A knack for growing plants and keeping them healthy: “All my houseplants are in sorry shape; it's clear I don't have a green thumb.”

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green thumb Idioms  

1. A knack for making plants grow well, as in Just look at Louise's plants—she really has a green thumb. This term presumably alludes to the stained fingers of an avid gardener. [First half of 1900s]

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Other Word Forms

• green-thumber
  noun
• green-thumbed
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of green thumb

First recorded in 1940–45

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

green thumb

But my green thumb ached as workers sawed down the tree, took away everything — trunk, twigs, leaves, fruit, roots — in biohazard bags and tagged the remaining trees with a bill of clean health.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 18, 2024

Gardener-writers helped puncture that belief by dispelling the myth of the green thumb.

From Washington Post ● Feb. 22, 2023

Outside of school, Reagan enjoys ceramics, obsessing over Victorian literature, and trying to keep her plants alive, although her succulents are proof that she may not have a green thumb.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 8, 2023

Our holiday gift guide features the best tools and accessories to boost a beginner’s confidence or please a green thumb.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2022

When I was little, Papa used to tell me that instead of a green thumb, Tūtū had a green ear.

From "Clairboyance" by Kristiana Kahakauwila

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