See rule of thumb in All languages combined, or Wiktionary
Download JSON data for rule of thumb meaning in English (9.3kB)
{
"descendants": [
{
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"templates": [
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"args": {
"1": "de",
"2": "Daumenregel",
"cal": "1"
},
"expansion": "→ German: Daumenregel (calque)",
"name": "desc"
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],
"text": "→ German: Daumenregel (calque)"
}
],
"etymology_text": "Attested since 1658. Of uncertain origin, but probably based on the use of the thumb as reference for various measurements. For instance, one theory notes that the inch originated as the distance between the base of the thumbnail and the first joint, another notes the practice of approximating the general direction of the wind by wetting the thumb then raising it in the air. A third theory notes that English royal banquet plate setters used the distance of their thumbs to equally space each plate from the table edge.\nThe erroneous claim that the term referred to the maximum thickness of a stick with which it was permissible for a man to beat his wife has appeared in The Washington Post and Time; it may originate from Del Martin's 1976 book Battered Wives.",
"forms": [
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"form": "rules of thumb",
"tags": [
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"pos": "noun",
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{
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{
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"kind": "other",
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{
"text": "The usual rule of thumb says that to calculate when an investment will double, divide 70 by the interest rate.",
"type": "example"
},
{
"ref": "c. 1935, Ogden Nash, “Reflection on Ingenuity”, in Verses from 1929 On, published 1959",
"text": "Here's a good rule of thumb:\nToo clever is dumb.",
"type": "quotation"
},
{
"ref": "2016, James Lambert, “Ornithonymy and Lexicographical Selection Criteria”, in International Journal of Lexicography, volume 30, number 1, pages 39–62",
"text": "Since it is impossible to second-guess what a user will want to look up, there is a general lexicographical rule of thumb to err on the side of inclusion.",
"type": "quotation"
}
],
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"A general guideline, rather than a strict rule; an approximate measure or means of reckoning based on experience or common knowledge."
],
"id": "en-rule_of_thumb-en-noun-Parf6zZY",
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{
"_dis1": "100 0",
"english": "in attributive usage",
"word": "rule-of-thumb"
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{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"alt": "qāʕida(t) ʕāmma",
"code": "ar",
"lang": "Arabic",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "قَاعِدَة عَامَّة"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "ca",
"lang": "Catalan",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "regla general"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "拇指規則"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "mǔzhǐ guīzé",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"calque"
],
"word": "拇指规则"
},
{
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"word": "概測法"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "cmn",
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"roman": "gàicèfǎ",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "概测法"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "經驗法則"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "jīngyàn fǎzé",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "经验法则"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "一般規則"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "yībān guīzé",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "一般规则"
},
{
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"code": "da",
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{
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"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "vuistregel"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "nyrkkisääntö"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "peukalosääntö"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
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},
{
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"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "au doigt mouillé"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
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},
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"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
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},
{
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"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "Daumenregel"
},
{
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"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"roman": "praktikós kanónas",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "πρακτικός κανόνας"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
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"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"masculine"
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},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "ökölszabály"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "is",
"lang": "Icelandic",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "þumalputtaregla"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "it",
"lang": "Italian",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "a lume di naso"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"alt": "だいたいのめやす",
"code": "ja",
"lang": "Japanese",
"roman": "daitai no meyasu",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "大体の目安"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"alt": "めのこざん",
"code": "ja",
"lang": "Japanese",
"roman": "me no kozan",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "目の子算"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "mk",
"lang": "Macedonian",
"roman": "opšto načelo",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "општо начело"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "nb",
"lang": "Norwegian Bokmål",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "tommelfingerregel"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "nn",
"lang": "Norwegian Nynorsk",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "tommelfingerregel"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "heurística"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "macete"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "manha"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"roman": "praktíčeskoje právilo",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "практи́ческое пра́вило"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"roman": "empiríčeskij prijóm",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "эмпири́ческий приём"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "es",
"lang": "Spanish",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "regla general"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "sv",
"lang": "Swedish",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"common-gender"
],
"word": "tumregel"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "tr",
"lang": "Turkish",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "pratik kural"
}
]
},
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],
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{
"text": "I made a quick, rule-of-thumb estimate of the manhours required for the job.",
"type": "example"
}
],
"glosses": [
"Approximated, guesstimated."
],
"id": "en-rule_of_thumb-en-noun-gFe9gCjZ",
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"approximate"
],
[
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"qualifier": "usually hyphenated",
"raw_glosses": [
"(attributive, usually hyphenated) Approximated, guesstimated."
],
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"sounds": [
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"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/e/e6/En-au-rule_of_thumb.ogg/En-au-rule_of_thumb.ogg.mp3",
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{
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"text": "→ German: Daumenregel (calque)"
}
],
"etymology_text": "Attested since 1658. Of uncertain origin, but probably based on the use of the thumb as reference for various measurements. For instance, one theory notes that the inch originated as the distance between the base of the thumbnail and the first joint, another notes the practice of approximating the general direction of the wind by wetting the thumb then raising it in the air. A third theory notes that English royal banquet plate setters used the distance of their thumbs to equally space each plate from the table edge.\nThe erroneous claim that the term referred to the maximum thickness of a stick with which it was permissible for a man to beat his wife has appeared in The Washington Post and Time; it may originate from Del Martin's 1976 book Battered Wives.",
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"pos": "noun",
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"type": "example"
},
{
"ref": "c. 1935, Ogden Nash, “Reflection on Ingenuity”, in Verses from 1929 On, published 1959",
"text": "Here's a good rule of thumb:\nToo clever is dumb.",
"type": "quotation"
},
{
"ref": "2016, James Lambert, “Ornithonymy and Lexicographical Selection Criteria”, in International Journal of Lexicography, volume 30, number 1, pages 39–62",
"text": "Since it is impossible to second-guess what a user will want to look up, there is a general lexicographical rule of thumb to err on the side of inclusion.",
"type": "quotation"
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],
"glosses": [
"A general guideline, rather than a strict rule; an approximate measure or means of reckoning based on experience or common knowledge."
],
"links": [
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],
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"approximate",
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"glosses": [
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"synonyms": [
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"word": "rule-of-thumb"
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"translations": [
{
"alt": "qāʕida(t) ʕāmma",
"code": "ar",
"lang": "Arabic",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "قَاعِدَة عَامَّة"
},
{
"code": "ca",
"lang": "Catalan",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "regla general"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "拇指規則"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "mǔzhǐ guīzé",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"calque"
],
"word": "拇指规则"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "概測法"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "gàicèfǎ",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "概测法"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "經驗法則"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "jīngyàn fǎzé",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "经验法则"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "一般規則"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "yībān guīzé",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "一般规则"
},
{
"code": "da",
"lang": "Danish",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"common-gender"
],
"word": "tommelfingerregel"
},
{
"code": "nl",
"lang": "Dutch",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "vuistregel"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "nyrkkisääntö"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "peukalosääntö"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "règle générale"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "au doigt mouillé"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "au pif"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "Faustregel"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "Daumenregel"
},
{
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"roman": "praktikós kanónas",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "πρακτικός κανόνας"
},
{
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"roman": "vasikós kanónas",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "βασικός κανόνας"
},
{
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "ökölszabály"
},
{
"code": "is",
"lang": "Icelandic",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "þumalputtaregla"
},
{
"code": "it",
"lang": "Italian",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "a lume di naso"
},
{
"alt": "だいたいのめやす",
"code": "ja",
"lang": "Japanese",
"roman": "daitai no meyasu",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "大体の目安"
},
{
"alt": "めのこざん",
"code": "ja",
"lang": "Japanese",
"roman": "me no kozan",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "目の子算"
},
{
"code": "mk",
"lang": "Macedonian",
"roman": "opšto načelo",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "општо начело"
},
{
"code": "nb",
"lang": "Norwegian Bokmål",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "tommelfingerregel"
},
{
"code": "nn",
"lang": "Norwegian Nynorsk",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "tommelfingerregel"
},
{
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "heurística"
},
{
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "macete"
},
{
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "manha"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"roman": "praktíčeskoje právilo",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "практи́ческое пра́вило"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"roman": "empiríčeskij prijóm",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "эмпири́ческий приём"
},
{
"code": "es",
"lang": "Spanish",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "regla general"
},
{
"code": "sv",
"lang": "Swedish",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"tags": [
"common-gender"
],
"word": "tumregel"
},
{
"code": "tr",
"lang": "Turkish",
"sense": "general guideline rather than a strict rule",
"word": "pratik kural"
}
],
"wikipedia": [
"rule of thumb"
],
"word": "rule of thumb"
}
This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-05-03 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-05-02 using wiktextract (f4fd8c9 and c9440ce). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.
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