The middle finger, long finger, second finger, third finger, toll finger or tall man is the third digit of the
human
Humans (''Homo sapiens'') or modern humans are the most common and widespread species of primate, and the last surviving species of the genus ''Homo''. They are Hominidae, great apes characterized by their Prehistory of nakedness and clothing ...
hand
A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the Koala#Characteristics, koala (which has two thumb#O ...
, typically located between the
index finger
The index finger (also referred to as forefinger, first finger, second finger, pointer finger, trigger finger, digitus secundus, digitus II, and many other terms) is the second digit of a human hand. It is located between the thumb and the m ...
and the
ring finger
The ring finger, third finger, fourth finger, leech finger, or annulary is the fourth digit of the human hand, located between the middle finger and the little finger.
Sometimes the term ring finger only refers to the fourth digit of a left-ha ...
. It is typically the longest digit. In
anatomy
Anatomy () is the branch of morphology concerned with the study of the internal structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old scien ...
, it is also called ''the third finger'', ''digitus medius'', ''digitus tertius'' or ''digitus III''.
Overview
In Western countries,
extending the middle finger (either by itself, or along with the
index finger
The index finger (also referred to as forefinger, first finger, second finger, pointer finger, trigger finger, digitus secundus, digitus II, and many other terms) is the second digit of a human hand. It is located between the thumb and the m ...
in the United Kingdom: see
V sign) is an offensive and obscene gesture, widely recognized as a form of insult, due to its resemblance of an
erect penis
A penis (; : penises or penes) is a sex organ through which male and hermaphrodite animals expel semen during copulation (zoology), copulation, and through which male placental mammals and marsupials also Urination, urinate.
The term ''pen ...
. It is known, colloquially, as "flipping the bird", "flipping (someone) off", or "giving (someone) the finger".
The middle finger is often used for
finger snapping
Snapping (or clicking) one's fingers is the act of creating a snapping or clicking sound with one's fingers. Primarily, this is done by building tension between the thumb and another (Middle finger, middle, Index finger, index, or Ring finger, ...
together with the thumb.
See also
*
Finger numbering
The ''first finger'' is an ambiguous term in the English language due to two competing finger numbering systems that can be used. It might refer to either the thumb or the index finger, depending on the context.
Consequently, also the terms ''seco ...
*
Galileo's middle finger
References
External links
*
Fingers
Hand gestures
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