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"rule of thumb" (that does that mean and where did that expression come from??)
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From
Why Do we Say It?, a book on the origin of expressions I have, it comes from an ability to make rough measurements. The first joint on an average thumb is apparently around an inch long. A foot was once the length of a foot, a hand the span of a hand, an "ell" the distance between your elbows with your arms outstretched, and a fathom the length of your arms outstretched. We still measure drinks in fingers sometimes -- give me four fingers of whiskey.
There's also some internet folklore that it dates back to some time in England, where you were allowed to beat your wife with a branch no larger in diameter than your thumb. I believe that one has been debunked as wishful thinking by some less-informed members of society....