middle finger
Americannoun
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the finger between the forefinger and the third finger.
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Slang. an obscene gesture of contempt made by pointing this finger upward while folding the other fingers against the palm; the finger.
The driver honked his horn and got the middle finger from the biker.
Usage
What else does middle finger mean? Giving someone the middle finger is an offensive gesture in which a person flips up their middle finger in a fist to show contempt or defiance.
Etymology
Origin of middle finger
First recorded before 1000; Middle English, Old English
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.
As someone who has hyper-specific playlists to regulate my moods, I appreciate that whether you want to party, chill outside or brandish your middle finger to the world, the Salon DJ Collective has you covered.
From Salon • Jun. 6, 2026
While she wasn't able to capture one of the men pointing his middle finger at her sister, she did manage to record the driver opening the door and shouting at them.
From BBC • Apr. 29, 2026
Several shared memes of Mr. Bean giving the middle finger, likening Iranian retaliatory attacks on the Gulf to the bumbling comedic character.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 8, 2026
Her sparse, wiry-looking fur sticks out in all directions as if she'd stuck that bony middle finger in an electric socket.
From Salon • May 11, 2025
She waved her free hand at Ivy, her nails painted to match a rainbow—red thumb, orange forefinger, yellow middle finger, green ring finger, blue pinkie.
From "Ivy Aberdeen’s Letter to the World" by Ashley Herring Blake
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.
