thumb in one's eye, a

Slang definitions & phrases for thumb in one's eye, a

thumb in one's eye, a

modifier

: The underside of Gramm's conservatism and thumb-in-your-eye individualism is a brutal political style

noun phrase

An annoyance; a constant irritant: Yeah, he's been a thumb in my eye for a long time (1970s+)

[fr a tactic in rough-and-tumble fighting, scorned by the traditionalists]