Meaning: acrostichum

n.
in some classification systems placed in family Polypodiaceae

hum Idiom, Proverb

a humdinger

a beautiful car etc. a well-designed product Dad, you should see this coupe. It's a humdinger!

all thumbs

clumsy, unable to hold it, fingers feel like thumbs When I try to sew a button on my shirt, I'm all thumbs.

eat humble pie

admit I did not play well, feel humble after defeat Ben had to eat humble pie after he finished fourth in the race.

green thumb

skill in making plants grow He has a real green thumb and has a beautiful garden.

humdinger

(See a humdinger)

humongous

huge, very large My uncle has this humongous dog. It's as big as a calf.

make your bum hum

excite you, please your senses, turn you on Anchovies on a banana split - that'll make your bum hum!

over the hump

past the difficult part, into an easier phase After saving $2000, I was over the hump. I could pay the tuition.

rule of thumb

general rule, guideline The rule of thumb for a resume is Don't exceed two pages.

sense of humor

"sense of what is humorous; what is funny" He has a broad sense of humor. He laughs at himself and others.

stick out like a sore thumb

not fit or blend, look out of place The ugly painting stuck out like a sore thumb in the art gallery.

thumb a lift/ride

hitchhike Their car had a flat tire so they thumbed a lift to the nearest gas station.

thumb one

look with disfavor or dislike, refuse to obey My friend thumbed his nose at me when I asked him to stop talking so loud.

turn thumbs down

disapprove or reject, say no The building committee turned thumbs down on our plans to make the office larger.

turn thumbs down on

reject The other negotiating team turned thumbs down on our wish to postpone the meeting until tomorrow.

under your thumb

under your control, doing your wishes Willie is under your thumb now. He does what you tell him to do.

warped sense of humor

thinking that weird things are funny If you laugh at cruelty, you have a warped sense of humor.

a hummer

exceptionally good:"Man, that boy is a hummer"

bible thumper

meaning the same as bible basher

chump

1. derogatory term for a fool, a disliked person
2. the head
3. displeasing, stupid

humming

coming at someone

thump

to engage in a fistfight

out of humor

not pleasant；not in good mood不高兴的；情绪不高的
He was probably still out of humor over the affair of this morning．他大概还在为早上的事闷闷不乐。
Why is she so out of humor today？她今天为什么不高兴？

twiddle one's thumbs

Idiom(s): twiddle one's thumbs

Theme: TIME - WASTE

to fill up time by playing with one's fingers.
• What am I supposed to do while waiting for you? Sit here and twiddle my thumbs?
• Don't sit around twiddling your thumbs. Get busy!

turn thumbs up

Idiom(s): turn thumbs up (on sb or sth)

Theme: ACCEPTANCE

to accept someone or something; to approve someone or something.
• The board of directors turned thumbs up on my proposal and voted to fund the project.
• When the boss turned thumbs up, I knew everything was okay.
• The committee turned thumbs up on Carl as the new manager.

thumbs up on

Idiom(s): thumbs up on sb or sth

Theme: SUPPORT

in favor of someone or something.
• Bob is thumbs up on hiring Claude.
• I never hoped she'd agree with our plan, but she's totally thumbs up on it.

thumbs down on

Idiom(s): thumbs down on sb or sth

Theme: OPPOSITION

opposed to someone or something.
• Bob is thumbs down on hiring anyone else.
• I had hoped that she'd agree with our plan, but she's thumbs down on it.

thumb through

Idiom(s): thumb through something AND leaf through something

Theme: EXAMINATION

to look through a book, magazine, or newspaper, without reading it carefully.
• I've only thumbed through this book, but it looks very interesting.
• I leafed through a magazine while waiting to see the doctor.

thumb one's nose at

Idiom(s): thumb one's nose at sb or sth

Theme: INSULT

to (figuratively or literally) make a rude gesture of disgust with one's thumb and nose at someone or something.
• The tramp thumbed his nose at the lady and walked away.
• You can't just thumb your nose at people who give you trouble. You've got to learn to get along.

thumb a ride

Idiom(s): thumb a ride AND hitch a ride

Theme: TRANSPORTATION

to get a ride from a passing motorist; to make a sign with one's thumb that indicates to passing drivers that one is begging for a ride.
• My car broke down on the highway, and I had to thumb a ride to get back to town.
• Sometimes it's dangerous to hitch a ride with a stranger.

milk of human kindness

Idiom(s): milk of human kindness

Theme: KINDNESS

natural kindness and sympathy shown to others. (From Shakespeare's play Macbeth, I. v.)
• Mary is completely hard and selfish—she has no milk of human kindness in her.
• Roger is too full of the milk of human kindness and people take advantage of him.

have a green thumb

Idiom(s): have a green thumb

Theme: GARDENING

to have the ability to grow plants well.
• Just look at Mr. Simpson's garden. He has a green thumb.
• My mother has a green thumb when it comes to houseplants.

get sb under one's thumb

Idiom(s): get someone over a barrel AND get someone under one's thumb

Theme: DOMINATION

for someone to be put at the mercy of someone; to get control over someone.
• He got me over a barrel, and I had to do what he said.
• Ann will do exactly what I say. I've got her over a barrel.
• All right, John. You've got me under your thumb. What do you want me to do?

To err is human, to forgive divine

It is human nature to make mistakes, therefore one should forgive.

All fingers and thumbs

If you're all fingers and thumbs, you are too excited or clumsy to do something properly that requires manual dexterity. 'All thumbs' is an alternative form of the idiom.

Fingers and thumbs

If you are all fingers and thumbs, you are being clumsy and not very skilled with your hands.

Off your chump

(UK) If someone is off their chump, they are crazy or irrational.

Put your thumb on the scales

If you put your thumb on the scales, you try to influence the result of something in your favour.

Thumb your nose at

If you thumb your nose at something, you reject it or scorn it.

Thumbs down & thumbs up

If something gets the thumbs up, it gets approval, while the thumbs down means disapproval.

be under the thumb

to be controlled by someone else: "He really keeps her under the thumb."

To err is human.

It is natural for all of us to make mistakes.

all thumbs|all|thumb|thumbs

adj., informal Awkward, especially with your hands; clumsy. Harry tried to fix the chair but he was all thumbs.

chum around with|chum

v. phr. 1. To be close friends with someone. They have been chumming around with one another for quite some time. 2. To travel around with someone. Jack is planning to chum around with Tim in Europe this summer.

eat humble pie|eat|humble|humble pie|pie

v. phr. To be humbled; to accept insult or shame; admit your error and apologize. Tow told a lie about George, and when he was found out, he had to eat humble pie. In some old stories a boy with a stepfather has to eat humble pie.

gallows' humor|gallows|humor

n. phr. Bitter joke(s) that make fun of a very serious matter, e.g. death, imprisonment, etc. When the criminal was led to the electric chair on Monday morning, he said, "Nice way to start the week, eh?"

green thumb|green|thumb

n., informal A talent for gardening; ability to make things grow.

Considered trite by many. Mr. Wilson's neighbors say his flowers grow because he has a green thumb.

huh-uh|hum-um|uh-uh

adv., informal No.

Used only in speech or to record dialogue. Did Mary come? Huh-uh. Is it raining out? Uh-uh.
Antonym: UH-UH.

keep things humming|hum|humming|keep|things

v. phr. To cause thing to perform smoothly and efficiently. Until Mr. Long joined our computer center, we had all sorts of problems, but he has corrected them and really keeps things humming.

over the hump|hump|over

adj. phr., informal Past the most difficult part; past the crisis; out of danger. Mary was failing math, but she is over the hump now. John was very sick after his accident, hut he's over the hump. When Mr. Smith was out of work it looked as if his family would have to go on relief, but they got over the hump.