Tom Thumb

American  

noun

1. a diminutive hero of folk tales.

2. an extremely small person; dwarf.

3. General, nickname of Charles Sherwood Stratton.

---

Tom Thumb British  

noun

1. General, stage name of Charles Stratton. 1838–83, US midget, exhibited in P. T. Barnum's circus

2. a dwarf; midget

---

Tom Thumb Cultural  

1. A thumb-sized hero of children's stories from the sixteenth century on.

---

Etymology

Origin of Tom Thumb

after Tom Thumb, the tiny hero of several English folk tales

Example Sentences

Tomatoes such as Early Girl, Roma, Health Kick and Tom Thumb are some of the common compact tomato varieties that work well for containers, he said.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 25, 2023

Tom Thumb, Chang and Eng, even animal acts like Jumbo the elephant.

From Washington Post • Oct. 18, 2019

My heart broke for Haydon, especially since I know, with zero doubt, that if given the choice, I’d have gone to see Tom Thumb.

From New York Times • Jul. 26, 2018

On or about this day in 1830, the Tom Thumb, the first American-built steam locomotive, sought to demonstrate the superiority of steam power by racing a horse.

From Slate • Aug. 28, 2017

The author is a “glutton of names and colours” and has accomplished no more than might be done on such subjects as Mother Goose, Waterloo or Tom Thumb.

From Leigh Hunt's Relations with Byron, Shelley and Keats by Miller, Barnette

Related Words

• gnome
• goblin
• gremlin
• hobgoblin
• troll