fat-finger

American  

[fat-fing-ger] / ˈfætˌfɪŋ gər /

adjective

1. noting or pertaining to errors made by hitting the wrong key or button on a keyboard, keypad, or number pad.

   fat-finger dialing errors;

   a large number of typos evidencing the fat-finger syndrome.

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verb (used with object)

1. to make an error in or on (something) by hitting the wrong key or button.

   I must have fat-fingered my username.

   You can easily fat-finger the tiny keyboard on this device.

fat-finger British  

verb

1. to make a mistake by pressing the wrong key on a keyboard or number pad

2. to make an error that causes further problems

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Etymology

Origin of fat-finger

First recorded in 2000–05; so called from using the thumb to type, or accidentally hitting two keys with one finger

Example Sentences

This technical glitch came a day after a fat-finger incident in China's financial futures market.

From Reuters • Nov. 9, 2022

While fat-finger errors can spark sharp swings in traditional markets, they are uniquely problematic in the crypto world, since blockchain transactions are supposedly irreversible.

From Washington Post • Sep. 28, 2021

Even when I fat-finger or misspell, I hate autocorrect.

From New York Times • Jan. 9, 2015

The keys click just so, with the carefully designed ridges that register the right letter no matter how you fat-finger it.

From The Verge • Dec. 23, 2014

Computerized trading has given rise to a genre of errors on Wall Street known as fat-finger slip-ups, because pressing a wrong key can mean a difference of millions or billions in trades.

From The Wall Street Journal • Aug. 19, 2011