thumb down
B1 informal separable transitive
In simple words
To say 'no' or show you don't like something, like pressing thumbs down.
Literal meaning: To press or point the thumb in a downward direction.
Meanings
1 B1
idiomatic
informal
To express disapproval or rejection of something, often by a gesture or informal decision.
"The committee thumbed down the new proposal without even reading the full report."
Grammar: separable
Usage notes
Derived from the gesture of pointing the thumb downward to signal disapproval. Commonly used in both digital contexts (disliking a video) and general speech. Less common as a full phrasal verb compared to the noun/adjective 'thumbs-down'. More frequently 'give a thumbs-down' than 'thumb down'.
Commonly used with
proposal plan idea video performance decision
Forms
Base
thumb down
I/you/we/they
3rd person
thumbs down
he/she/it
Past simple
thumbed down
yesterday
Past participle
thumbed down
have + pp
-ing form
thumbing down
continuous
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Synonyms
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