noun, slang ·Uncommon ·College level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   Someone who sucks their thumb.
2. 2
   A piece of serious journalism that explains the background of current events and interprets them in a manner comforting to the intended readers. US, slang

Etymology

From thumb + sucker, suggesting the ignorance of a thumb-sucking child who needs things explained.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.