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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.

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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Etymology

Origin of thumbs-up

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

He said it was good to see Sinners get "this broad a series of accolades and thumbs up from across the whole industry".

From BBC • Jan. 22, 2026

He has a big grin, giving two thumbs up.

From Slate • Jan. 6, 2026

Lemmy gave me a thumbs up and said, “That’s true rock ‘n’ roll.”

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 12, 2025

“The content does not violate our advertising policies. However, users can mark any ad with a thumbs up or thumbs down to help manage their ads preferences.”

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 17, 2025

The centaur came up grinning, covered in swamp muck and blue paint, and gave Tyson two thumbs up.

From "The Sea of Monsters" by Rick Riordan