thumbs up

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thumbs up

Where it comes from

Said to refer to the signal of approval or disapproval used by spectators at a Roman amphitheatre, but the directions have been reversed, and the Roman gesture was a bent thumb.

noun thumbs ups · thumbs up · thumbs-up · thumb up · thumb-up

A gesture signifying approval or okay; a thumb pointing up out of a fist. He smiled and gave a big thumbs up.
Opposite: thumbs down
figuratively An approval or OK. We got the thumbs up to go ahead with the project.
Opposite: thumbs down

Translations

Every language

noun a gesture signifying approval or okay

Español	pulgar arriba, pulgar bueno
한국어	엄지척 eomjicheok, 따봉 ttabong
हिन्दी	जयकार jaykār, विजयोत्सव vijyotsav
Português	joinha, fixe

noun an approval or OK

Español	aprobación, asenso
Português	joia

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Cite this

MLA

"thumbs up." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/thumbs%20up. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

thumbs up. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/thumbs%20up

Chicago

"thumbs up." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/thumbs%20up.

BibTeX

@misc{thumbs_up_2026,
  title = {thumbs up},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/thumbs%20up},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}