thimble

American  

[thim-buhl] / ˈθɪm bəl /

noun

1. a small cap, usually of metal, worn over the fingertip to protect it when pushing a needle through cloth in sewing.

2. Mechanics. any of various similar devices or attachments.

3. Nautical. a metal ring with a concave groove on the outside, used to line the outside of a ring of rope forming an eye.

4. a sleeve of sheet metal passing through the wall of a chimney, for holding the end of a stovepipe or the like.

5. a thimble-shaped printing element with raised characters on the exterior: used in a type of electronic typewriter or computer printer thimbleprinter.

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thimble British  

/ ˈθɪmbəl /

noun

1. a cap of metal, plastic, etc, used to protect the end of the finger when sewing

2. any small metal cap resembling this

3. nautical a loop of metal having a groove at its outer edge for a rope or cable, for lining the inside of an eye

4. short for thimbleful

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Other Word Forms

• thimblelike adjective

Etymology

Origin of thimble

before 1000; Middle English thym ( b ) yl, Old English thȳmel; akin to Old Norse thumall thumb of a glove. See thumb, -le

Explanation

A thimble is a device that protects your fingertips from being pricked by a needle. It's a good idea to use a thimble when you're sewing by hand. When you sew with a needle and thread, you can wear a thimble on whichever finger you tend to use for pushing the needle through the cloth. Most thimbles are made of metal (originally they were made from leather) and fit like a small cup over your fingertip. The word thimble shares a root with the word thumb.

Example Sentences

A piece of Fern’s called out societal expectations that a woman “unobtrusively gather up her thimble and, retiring into some out-of-the-way place, gradually scoop out her coffin with it.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 27, 2026

For all its suffocating air of unease, “Keeper” is as deep as a thimble, having little to say about relationships, toxic men or anything else.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 14, 2025

She recently helped assess a silver thimble found in a field in Flintshire by metal detectorists which was then declared treasure.

From BBC • Aug. 16, 2025

Next to that, Charlotte's pudge paranoia is a thimble of that bone broth she forlornly sucks down in her quick weight-loss quest.

From Salon • Aug. 6, 2023

Obviously, trying to cram Butler’s head into the original helmet would be like trying to fit a potato into a thimble.

From "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer