Hello and welcome back to Daily English! Today’s idiom is a strong one: “under someone’s thumb.” One more time: under someone’s thumb.
Imagine a man who can’t make any decision without his girlfriend’s approval. He does what she says, when she says it. He’s completely under her thumb.
– Or a boss who controls every tiny detail—his employees are afraid to speak up. They’re all under his thumb.
Definition
To be under someone’s thumb means to be completely controlled or dominated by another person.
Examples: He’s always been under his boss’s thumb, too afraid to say no.
The young woman was independent at first, but later found herself under her partner’s thumb.
For years, the town was under the mayor’s thumb—every decision had to go through him.
This idiom comes from the image of literally pressing something small beneath your thumb, holding it down so it can’t move. It’s been used in English since the 1700s to talk about control and power.
Personal Question So, have you ever felt under someone’s thumb—maybe a boss, a teacher, or even a family member? How did you deal with it?