middle finger

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Jump to navigation Jump to search

English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Middle English myddel fyngir.

Noun[edit]

middle finger (plural middle fingers)

  1. The finger between the forefinger and the ring finger
    Synonyms: (vulgar slang) fuck finger, (dated) medius, mid-finger, (colloquial) tall man
  2. An obscene gesture directed towards another as an insult, made by sticking up the middle finger of a hand.
    • 2018 February 4, Jason Silverstein, “Giving Middle Finger to Police Is a First Amendment Right, Man Argues in Lawsuit Over Ticket”, in Newsweek:
      An Indiana man argues in a federal lawsuit filed last week that he had a First Amendment right to give the middle finger to a state trooper, and that his free speech was violated when the gesture earned him a ticket.
  3. (figurative) An insult directed at someone.
    • 2007, Dominique Paul, The Possibility of Fireflies, page 62:
      Her whole way of being is a big middle finger to the other guy.
    • 2023 October 24, “Colorado judge says company acted "maliciously and in bad faith" in coin stunt”, in CBS News[1]:
      Beem called the tactic [paying US$23500 settlement in coins] "petty and a grand waste of time" and said the coin delivery was "a symbolic middle finger."

Translations[edit]