to bite one's thumb at one
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
To insult him. Formerly a way of expressing defiance and contempt was by snapping the ringer or putting the thumb m the mouth.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to bite one's thumb at one” mean?
To insult him. Formerly a way of expressing defiance and contempt was by snapping the ringer or putting the thumb m the mouth.
Is “to bite one's thumb at one” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.