thumbnail

[thuhm-neyl]

noun

1. the nail of the thumb.

2. anything quite small or brief, as a small drawing or short essay.

3. Printing.,  a small, rough dummy.

4. Also called porkchop. Journalism, Printing.,  a half-column portrait in a newspaper.

adjective

1. quite small or brief; concise.

   a thumbnail description of Corsica.

verb (used with object)

1. to make a thumbnail sketch or description of.

thumbnail

/ ˈθʌmˌneɪl /

noun

1. the nail of the thumb

2. (modifier) concise and brief

   a thumbnail sketch

3. computing a small image which can be expanded

Word History and Origins

Origin of thumbnail¹

First recorded in 1595–1605; thumb + nail

Example Sentences

But if that thumbnail sketch makes “Lux” sound like homework, the songs themselves are immediate and visceral, and the singer’s impassioned delivery is an invitation to listen more closely.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

For each featured book, there’s a thumbnail portrait of its author, an image of the cover and one or two other intriguing visuals.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Feeling playful, she used the edge of her thumbnail to press an L for “Lumley” into the soft wax, just as if she had her own personal seal.

Read more on Literature

In fact, he tried that earlier this year - but faced a backlash from other creators when he released an AI tool which generated thumbnails for videos.

Read more on BBC

There's also a historian who tracked his thumbnail growth for 35 years, and physics researchers exploring the mysteries of pasta sauce.

Read more on BBC