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thumbprint

American  
[thuhm-print] / ˈθʌmˌprɪnt /

noun

  1. a mark or impression of the ventral surface of the last joint of the thumb.

thumbprint British  
/ ˈθʌmˌprɪnt /

noun

  1. an impression of the upper part of the thumb, used esp for identification purposes See fingerprint

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of thumbprint

First recorded in 1895–1900; thumb + print

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.

These versions are also much larger: while an O’Ryan’s potato is about the size of a thumbprint, See’s can stretch up to three inches long.

From Salon • Mar. 17, 2026

If this is your era, put a thumbprint on it.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 10, 2025

In these postwar decades, Cowley’s thumbprint seemed to be on everything.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 7, 2025

That thumbprint made at Stalag 8b inspired Jacqueline to search for more answers in a Facebook group for relatives of prisoners of war.

From BBC • Nov. 9, 2024

The EGG subsequently scans his/her/their thumbprint on the EGG to trigger energy conversion.

From "The First State of Being" by Erin Entrada Kelly

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.