Thumb-up or Thumbs-up

[Biskit]

Would you describe this as being a "thumb-up" or "thumbs-up" symbol?

 

[Toby Frost]

Thumbs for me.

 

[The Judge]

Yep, "thumbs-up" for me, too, since it's not just a thumb being up, as it were, it's a pictorial form of the recognised thumbs-up sign.

 

[Wayne Mack]

Ditto on thumbs-up, though I don't have a clue as to why it would be a plural and not a singular.

 

[M. Robert Gibson]

According to the mouse-over text it's 'Thumbs Up', and who are we to argue with mouse-over text?

 

[HareBrain]

I don't have a clue as to why it would be a plural and not a singular.

I'd never thought of this before, but yes, weird. You do sometimes see people do it with both thumbs, but I thought the origins of thumbs up or thumbs down was (at least in popular imagination) the old Roman gladiatorial thing, and that was only one hand, I think? But you always hear "He gave him the thumbs down".

 

[Biskit]

Thank you, all. I wrote "thumb-up", the Biskitetta told me it ought to be "thumbs-up", and I agreed, and then the little nagging doubts started...

 

[AllanR]

I think it's plural as the origins of the term seem to be describing the action of more than one person; the thumbs of the crowd at the coloseum or the thumbs of the archers indicating they are ready for battle. Only later did it get associated with a single person and a single thumb.

 

[tinkerdan]

TBH in some places that is equivalent to Up-Yours.(or something worse).

 

[KiraAnn]

To me, that’s a Gig ‘Em !

Look up Texas A & M for reference.