View synonyms for

green thumb

noun

an exceptional aptitude for gardening or for growing plants successfully.
Houseplants provide much pleasure for the city dweller with a green thumb.

green thumb

noun

Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): green fingers.��considerable talent or ability to grow plants

green thumb

A knack for growing plants and keeping them healthy: “All my houseplants are in sorry shape; it's clear I don't have a green thumb.”

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Other Word Forms

green-thumbed adjective
green-thumber noun

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Word History and Origins

Origin of green thumb¹

First recorded in 1940–45

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Idioms and Phrases

A knack for making plants grow well, as in Just look at Louise's plants—she really has a green thumb. This term presumably alludes to the stained fingers of an avid gardener. [First half of 1900s]

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Freddy Escobar stood on the sidewalk outside his former workplace waving a green thumb drive and a stack of papers that he said would clear his name.

From

But my green thumb ached as workers sawed down the tree, took away everything — trunk, twigs, leaves, fruit, roots — in biohazard bags and tagged the remaining trees with a bill of clean health.

From

He was happy to leave the plant decisions to Solberg, the green thumb of the family.

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His maternal grandmother was gifted with plant caregiving, and his mother was an “incredible grower” with an expert green thumb.

From

A walking red flag with a green thumb, he goes by the name Narvel Roth, which is surely some sort of punishment.

From

greenth green turtle

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