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• thumbs-up
  thumbs-up

  noun

  an act, instance, or gesture of assent, approval, or the like.
• thumbs up
  thumbs up

  Expressions of approval and disapproval respectively: “The two critics disagreed about the movie; one gave it thumbs up, the other thumbs down.” In the gladiatorial contests of ancient Rome, a thumbs-up gesture from the crowd meant that the loser would live; thumbs down meant death.

thumbs-up

American  

[thuhmz-uhp] / ˈθʌmzˈʌp /

noun

Informal.

thumbs-ups plural

1. an act, instance, or gesture of assent, approval, or the like.

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thumbs up Cultural  

1. Expressions of approval and disapproval respectively: “The two critics disagreed about the movie; one gave it thumbs up, the other thumbs down.” In the gladiatorial contests of ancient Rome, a thumbs-up gesture from the crowd meant that the loser would live; thumbs down meant death.

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thumbs up Idioms  

1. An expression of approval or hopefulness, as in The town said thumbs up on building the elderly housing project. The antonym thumbs down indicates disapproval or rejection, as in Mother gave us thumbs down on serving beer at our party. Alluding to crowd signals used in Roman amphitheaters, these idioms were first recorded in English about 1600. In ancient times the meaning of the gestures was opposite that of today. Thumbs down indicated approval; thumbs up, rejection. Exactly when the reversal occurred is not known, but the present conventions were established by the early 1900s.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• thumbs-ups
  plural

Etymology

Origin of thumbs-up

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

Jones was in the arena conducting an interview with the Netflix broadcast team when he received the challenge and gave a thumbs up amid the crowd’s cheers.

From Los Angeles Times • May 17, 2026

As one former senior official says: "Vetting is a process, not a point, it's not like a test you pass or fail - it's about managing risk, not big thumbs up or down."

From BBC • Apr. 18, 2026

“Why in the world would we give a seal of approval or a thumbs up to make you the largest behemoth on the planet related to content?”

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 4, 2026

As they take the show on tour, there's a quick but beautiful shot of Williams watching from under the stage, flashing a quick thumbs up at his former nemeses as they perform Rule The World.

From BBC • Jan. 27, 2026

There’s a gigantic black-and-orange San Francisco Giants flag on the wall, and pictures of fun stuff like him tandem skydiving with two thumbs up.

From "The House That Lou Built" by Mae Respicio