English · Idiom Candidate

thumb on the scale

Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

To influence or manipulate a decision unfairly

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Ảnh hưởng hoặc thao túng quyết định một cách không công bằng

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Literally: a weight added to one side of a scale

Where it’s used: Used Widespread English

Examples

The judge was accused of putting her thumb on the scale in the controversial case

AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)

Sources & notes

Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.

Topics: Hands

Common questions

What does “thumb on the scale” mean?

To influence or manipulate a decision unfairly Literally: a weight added to one side of a scale

Is “thumb on the scale” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.

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