Meaning

Question

What does the expression: "she is all fingers and tghumbs at sports" mean?

Clive · Accepted Answer

all fingers and thumbs physically clumsy and uncoordinated

AlpheccaStars · Answer

In cooking, she is all thumbs.

The idiom is "all thumbs." If a hand has 5 thumbs, it does not work very well, so the person that is "all thumbs" is not competent.
If a hand has both fingers and thumbs, it works quite well.

Blue Jay · Answer

AlpheccaStarsThe idiom is "all thumbs." If a hand has 5 thumbs, it does not work very well, so the person that is "all thumbs" is not competent.

It's more common to say all thumbs, and it makes more sense, but I've come across it the other way too.

I move a little closer to you, not knowing quite what to do
And I'm feeling all fingers and thumbs, I spill my tea, oh silly me!
But it's getting kind of late now
I wonder if you'll stay now, stay now, stay now, stay now
Or will you just politely say goodnight?
Of course, song lyrics aren't always the best place to look for standard English.

Fivejedjon · Answer

'All fingers and thumbs', meaning uncoordinated,' may not be logical, but it's commonly used in BrE.

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