finger
Pronunciation: /ˈfɪŋgə/
noun
- each of the four slender jointed parts attached to either hand (or five, if the thumb is included): she raked her hair back with her fingers
- a part of a glove intended to cover a finger.
- a measure of spirits in a glass, based on the breadth of a finger: two fingers of brandy
- an object that has roughly the long, narrow shape of a finger: a shortbread finger
verb
- 1touch or feel with the fingers: the thin man fingered his moustache
- play (a musical instrument) with the fingers, especially in a tentative or casual manner: a woman fingered a lute
- 2 informal, chiefly North American inform on (someone) to the police: he was fingered by a supergrass and charged with murder
- identify or select: the additive had been fingered as a possible human health risk
- 3 Music play (a passage) with a particular sequence of positions of the fingers. See also fingering1.
- mark (music) with signs showing which fingers are to be used.
Phrases
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be all fingers and thumbs
- British informal be clumsy or awkward in one’s actions.
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get (or pull) one's finger out
- British informal cease prevaricating and start to act.
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get one's fingers burned/burnt (or burn one's fingers)
- (especially in a financial context) suffer unpleasant consequences as a result of one’s actions, discouraging one from trying a similar action again.
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give someone the finger
- North American informal make a gesture with the middle finger raised as an obscene sign of contempt.
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have a finger in every pie
- be involved in a large and varied number of activities or enterprises.
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have a finger in the pie
- be involved in a matter, especially in an annoyingly interfering way.
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have (or keep) one's finger on the pulse
- be aware of all the latest news or developments: he keeps his finger on the pulse of world music
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lay a finger on someone
- touch someone, especially with the intention of harming them.
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put the finger on
- informal inform against (someone) to the authorities.
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put something on the long finger
- Irish postpone consideration of something; put something off: don’t put retirement planning on the long finger
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put one's finger on something
- identify something exactly: he cannot put his finger on what has gone wrong
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snap (or click) one's fingers
- make a sharp clicking sound by bending the last joint of the middle finger against the thumb and suddenly releasing it, typically in order to attract attention in a peremptory way or to accompany the beat of music.
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twist (or wind or wrap) someone around one's little finger
- see little finger.
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work one's fingers to the bone
- see bone.
Origin:
Old English, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch vinger and German Finger