Standard Lemma guide

fingering

noun · verb · 7 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: F IH1 NG G ER0 IH0 NG Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The act of using one's fingers in the playing of a musical instrument.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A specific method of using the fingers to play an instrument.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable

Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music

Examples

  • That chord has two fingerings.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

The act of using the fingers to stimulate one's own, or another person's, vulva, vagina, or anus.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A thin woollen yarn for stockings.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: sock yarn

Antonyms: none provided

5

verb

Meaning 5

present participle and gerund of finger

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: form-of, gerund, participle, present

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

touching something with the fingers

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: touch, touching

7

noun

Meaning 7

the placement of the fingers for playing different notes (or sequences of notes) on a musical instrument

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: placement, location, locating, position, positioning, emplacement

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

52 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: digitació — playing a musical instrument
  • Chinese Mandarin: 指法 (zhǐfǎ) — playing a musical instrument
  • Finnish: sormitus — playing a musical instrument
  • French: doigté — playing a musical instrument
  • Hungarian: ujjrend — playing a musical instrument
  • Italian: manualità — playing a musical instrument
  • Italian: gestualità — playing a musical instrument
  • Māori: pokipoki — playing a musical instrument
  • Polish: aplikatura — playing a musical instrument
  • Polish: palcowanie — playing a musical instrument
  • Portuguese: dedilhamento — playing a musical instrument
  • Portuguese: dedilhação — playing a musical instrument
  • Portuguese: digitação — playing a musical instrument
  • Portuguese: dedilhado — playing a musical instrument
  • Russian: аппликату́ра (applikatúra) — playing a musical instrument
  • Turkish: tıngırdatma — playing a musical instrument
  • Catalan: digitació — specific method
  • Chinese Mandarin: 指法 (zhǐfǎ) — specific method
  • Czech: prstoklad — specific method
  • Finnish: sormitus — specific method
  • German: Fingersatz — specific method
  • Hebrew: אִצְבּוּעַ (itzbúa') — specific method
  • Portuguese: digitação — specific method
  • Russian: аппликату́ра (applikatúra) — specific method
  • Slovak: prstoklad — specific method
  • Catalan: inserció del dit — sexual act
  • Chinese Mandarin: 指交 (zhǐjiāo) — sexual act
  • Czech: prstění — sexual act
  • Dutch: vingeren — sexual act
  • Finnish: sormiseksi — sexual act
  • Finnish: sormitus — sexual act
  • Finnish: sormetus — sexual act
  • French: doigtage — sexual act
  • Georgian: თითაობა (titaoba) — sexual act
  • German: fingern — sexual act
  • Indonesian: colmek — sexual act
  • Italian: ditalino — sexual act
  • Japanese: 手マン (te-man) — sexual act
  • Persian: انگل کردن (angol kardan) — sexual act
  • Polish: palcówka — sexual act
  • Portuguese: dedilhação — sexual act
  • Portuguese: siririca — sexual act
  • Russian: фи́нгеринг (fíngering) — sexual act
  • Sicilian: jitata — sexual act
  • Sicilian: jitaleḍḍu — sexual act
  • Sicilian: sfissijata — sexual act
  • Spanish: insertar — sexual act
  • Spanish: insertar — sexual act
  • Spanish: dedear — sexual act
  • Thai: ใช้นิ้ว — sexual act
  • Thai: ตกเบ็ด (dtòk-bèt) — sexual act
  • Turkish: parmaklama — sexual act