finger
noun · verb
Simple meaning
Similar or similar-looking extremities in other animals.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
finggerSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈfɪŋɡɚ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
zoology
Similar or similar-looking extremities in other animals, particularly
One of the slender bony structures before the pectoral fins of gurnards and sea robins (Triglidae).
One of the supporting structures of wings in birds, bats, etc. evolved from earlier toes or fingers.
anatomy
A slender jointed extremity of the human hand, (often) exclusive of the thumb.
Something similarly extending, (especially) from a larger body, particularly
The projections of a reaper or mower which similarly separate the stalks for cutting.
verb
transitive
To identify or point out; to blame for something.
transitive
To report to or identify for the authorities; to inform on.
Feel or handle with the fingers
“Finger the binding of the book.”
transitive
To poke, probe, feel, or fondle with a finger or fingers.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Similar or similar-looking extremities in other animals, particularly
Used this way, finger is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Nearby words
- digit , a specialist term, precise but narrower
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use finger
- “Her fingers were long and thin.”noun
- “Finger the binding of the book.”verb
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
The placement of the fingers for playing different notes (or sequences of notes) on a musical instrument.
Having or resembling a finger or fingers.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
Paint that has the consistency of jelly.
A painting produced by spreading paint with the fingers.
A flat protective covering (on a door or wall etc) to prevent soiling by dirty fingers.
The imputation of blame.
A basketball shot that rolls off the tips of the fingers into the basket.
Tall leafy European biennial or perennial having spectacular clusters of large tubular pink-purple flowers.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
A print made by an impression of the ridges in the skin of a finger.
The end (tip) of a finger.
A guidepost resembling a hand with a pointing index finger.
The length of breadth of a finger used as a linear measure.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.