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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

See Examples For:

thumbs-up thumbs up thumbs-ups

He emphasizes the point by revealing that he gave another driver a thumbs-up after being given permission to turn in a busy intersection.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

He offers Gruel a lazy thumbs-up, accepts the chef’s joke about cooking for a dignitary and immediately turns to the camera to recite the show’s mission statement.

From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026

Earlier this year, SpaceX’s request for a smaller expansion was given the thumbs-up.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 8, 2026

“My Barstow street taco, I’m going to enjoy,” he concluded in an accent from his native England, while giving a thumbs-up.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2026

Russo, facing the judge, put his hand behind his back and flashed a stealthy thumbs-up to the courtroom.

From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin

After the first defendant, O'Dare was sentenced and taken into the dock, people in the public gallery shouted "love you Ash" and gave thumbs up and shouts of support.

From BBC ● Jun. 17, 2026

She gives me a thumbs up, and with a kiss and a warm hug, we say goodbye.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 27, 2026

“Give a thumbs up if you think he should tell his friend,” Collins later urges the crowd.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 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

When she waved, Roy gave her two thumbs up and chuckled, because it was pretty funny—Beatrice the Bear waving at Tex, the new kid.

From "Hoot" by Carl Hiaasen

Along with 31 thumbs-ups, eight angry faces and several other emojis, the post got 24 comments.

From Salon ● Aug. 8, 2025

Zoom has a tendency to read “I’m scratching my face” as “I’m raising my hand,” and at least in my experience only responds to the most aggressive of thumbs-ups.

From The Verge ● Apr. 20, 2022

When the jurors were discharged and Guzman stood to leave the courtroom, the couple traded thumbs-ups.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 12, 2019

So Abby has earned King's stamp of approval, as well as a string of thumbs-ups in reviews across the country.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2016

She smiles, gives me two thumbs-ups and a look that says, you got this.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith