AskDefine | Define finger

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Dictionary Definition

finger

Noun

1 any of the terminal members of the hand (sometimes excepting the thumb); "her fingers were long and thin"
2 the length of breadth of a finger used as a linear measure [syn: fingerbreadth, finger's breadth, digit]
3 the part of a glove that provides a covering for one of the fingers

Verb

1 feel or handle with the fingers; "finger the binding of the book" [syn: thumb]
2 examine by touch; "Feel this soft cloth!"; "The customer fingered the sweater" [syn: feel]
3 search for on the computer; "I fingered my boss and found that he is not logged on in the afternoons"
4 indicate the fingering for the playing of musical scores for keyboard instruments

User Contributed Dictionary

see Finger

English

Etymology

From etyl ang finger

Pronunciation

Noun

  1. One of the long extremities of the hand.
    Human hands have 5 fingers: the thumb, the forefinger (or index finger), the middle finger, the ring finger and the little finger.
  2. A piece of food resembling such an extremity.
    chocolate fingers
  3. (also finger pier) A walkway extending from a dock, an airport terminal, etc, used by passengers to board a waiting ship or aeroplane.

Synonyms

Translations

extremity of the hand
piece of food
finger pier

Verb

  1. To identify or point out. Ex.: put the finger on To report to or identify for the authorities, rat on, rat out, squeal on, tattle on, turn in, to finger.
  2. To poke, probe, or fondle with a finger.
  3. transitive music (a) To use specified finger positions in producing notes on a musical instrument, (b) To provide instructions in written music as to which fingers are to be used to produce particular notes or passages.

Translations

to identify or point out
to poke
to provide instructions about the use of fingers in music

Derived terms

Related terms

Norwegian

Noun

  1. finger

Old English

Etymology

Common Germanic *fingraz, which is from Proto-Indo-European *penkʷ-ros, a suffixed form of *penkʷe, "five".

Noun

finger m
  1. finger

Old Frisian

Noun

finger
  1. finger

Swedish

Pronunciation

Noun

  1. finger; a body part

Derived terms

See also

West Frisian

Noun

finger
  1. finger

Yiddish

Noun

finger

Extensive Definition

Each finger may flex and extend, abduct and adduct, and so also circumduct. Flexion is by far the strongest movement. In humans, there are two large muscles that produce flexion of each finger, and additional muscles that augment the movement. Each finger may move independently of the others, though the muscle bulks that move each finger may be partly blended, and the tendons may be attached to each other by a net of fibrous tissue, preventing completely free movement. This is particularly noticeable when trying to extend the fourth digit (third finger) with the others flexed.
Fingers are usually moved under sub-conscious control. In humans, they are used for grasping, typing, grooming, writing, caressing, and many other activities. They are also used in signaling, as when wearing a wedding ring, finger counting or when communicating in sign language.
Aside from the genitals, the fingertips possess the highest concentration of touch receptors and thermoreceptors among all areas of the human skin, making them extremely sensitive to heat (and cold), pressure, vibration, texture, and moisture. Thus fingers are commonly used as sensory probes to ascertain properties of objects encountered in the world, and so they are prone to injury.
Fingers do not contain muscles other than arrector pili muscles. The muscles that move the finger joints are in the palm and forearm. The long tendons that deliver motion from the forearm muscles may be observed to move under the skin at the wrist and on the back of the hand.

Fingers

Each of the fingers has unique cultural and functional significance. From the thumb on the radial side to the ulnar side of the hand, the fingers are in this order:

Finger ratio

One of the major finger issues in modern science is John T. Manning's digit ratio, sometimes described as finger ratio - which concerns the ratio of the 2th finger (index finger) and the 4th finger (ring finger). In 2008 John Manning presented an update on his finger ratio research, titled: 'The finger book'.

Notes

See also

External links

finger in Bavarian: Finga
finger in Catalan: Dit
finger in Czech: Prst
finger in Danish: Finger
finger in German: Finger
finger in Spanish: Dedo
finger in Esperanto: Fingro
finger in French: Doigt
finger in Scottish Gaelic: Corrag
finger in Korean: 손가락
finger in Hindi: उंगली
finger in Ido: Fingro
finger in Igbo: Mkpisi-aka
finger in Indonesian: Jari
finger in Icelandic: Fingur
finger in Italian: Dito
finger in Hebrew: אצבע
finger in Latin: Digitus
finger in Lithuanian: Pirštai
finger in Hungarian: Ujj
finger in Dutch: Vinger
finger in Japanese: 指
finger in Norwegian: Finger
finger in Polish: Palec ręki
finger in Portuguese: Dedo
finger in Quechua: Ruk'ana
finger in Russian: Палец
finger in Simple English: Finger
finger in Slovak: Prst
finger in Finnish: Sormi
finger in Swedish: Finger
finger in Thai: นิ้วมือ
finger in Tagalog: Daliri sa kamay
finger in Tajik: Ангушт
finger in Turkish: Parmak
finger in Chinese: 手指

Synonyms, Antonyms and Related Words

accuse, acquire, advert to, allege, allude to, annulary, appoint, arraign, article, be master of, be taken as, bear witness, betray, book, bring accusation, bring charges, bring to book, bring to mind, buy, call to mind, charge, cite, claws, clutches, come by, come in contact, complain, condemn to death, dactylion, denominate, denote, denounce, denunciate, designate, determinate, diagnose, digit, digits, disappear, discover, distinguish, do something, dominate, elude, emblematize, escape, fangs, fasten on, fasten upon, feel, feel of, figure, figure in, find, fingernails, fingers, flick, forefinger, get away, get cracking, get hold of, handle, hands, hang something on, have under control, hit, hooks, identify, impeach, imply, impute, index, index finger, indicate, indict, influence, inform against, inform on, insinuate, jaws, lay charges, little finger, locate, lodge a complaint, lodge a plaint, lord it over, make, make a move, make an attempt, make an effort, mandibles, manipulate, maxillae, meathooks, medius, middle finger, minimus, mitts, monkey with, nails, name, nippers, nominate, offer, palm, palpate, paw, pick out, pin down, pin on, pincers, pinkie, pinpoint, place, ply, point at, point out, point to, poke at, pollex, pounces, prefer charges, press charges, prod, punch, purchase, put on report, recall, recognize, recollect, refer to, remember, report, reproach, ring finger, select, snitch on, specify, spot, stand for, stigmatize, strike, symbol, symbolize, take to task, talons, tap, task, tattle on, taunt with, tax, teeth, tell on, think of, thumb, touch, track down, twiddle, twit, typify, unearth, unguals, ungulae, vanish, wield, zero in on
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