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"Under someone's thumb"
Question
"Under someone's thumb"
Answer
Editor Kory Stamper addresses the idiom "under someone's thumb":
"Under someone's thumb" is an idiom that means "under someone's control or influence."
It generally has a negative connotation and can imply that someone has been forced into a position where they have no control ("Federal regulators have investors under their thumb," or "He had her under his thumb").
"Under someone's thumb" is a phrase that gives a word-picture of its meaning: Imagine a person squashing a bug using his or her thumb.
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