> as lemmas

i. to get one's thumb out of (a person's) mouth, to escape from, to get out of the clutches of. †the finger next one's thumb, one's closest friend. So †to be finger and thumb, to be on intimate terms. †a thumb under the girdle: an expression denoting reserve or unsociableness. †to a cow's thumb, exactly, perfectly, to a hair. there's my thumb (Scottish), in asseveration, in allusion to the practice of licking the thumb in sealing a bargain; see thumb-licking n. at Compounds 5. above one's thumb (Scottish), beyond one's reach or ability. to fash one's thumb (Scottish), to put oneself out, to worry or concern oneself. to clap, put, or keep the thumb on (Scottish), to keep secret. to whistle on one's thumb (Scottish): cf. to pipe in an ivy-leaf at ivy-leaf n. a. as easy as kiss my thumb. to have a green thumb: see green thumb n. at green adj. and n.¹ Compounds 1d(a). to stick out like a sore thumb: see sore adj.¹ 9e. See also rule of thumb n. and adj.