Hey does anybody know where the saying "Rule of Thumb" came from?

Question

I know the answer, I just want some other people's input on it.

Answer 1

Yes back in the day one of the laws were you couldn't hit your wife with any thing bigger or wider then your thumb! it's pretty messed up cause there's alot of things that could hurt a woman that are smaller then the thumb......using weapons are wrong to use unless both parties have one..lol

Answer 2

Around the 1800's until the turn of the century and in some states ( or local areas ) in the U.S., the rule of thumb meant that husbands were allowed to whip there wifes with a stick no bigger than the base of the husbands thumb, I've heard it was on the law books in many places in Lousiana until the 1990's

Answer 3

That is a topic of some debate.

One theory is an old English law about the size of a stick as the others have stated above.

Another is woodworkers were so skilled at their trade that they could accurately measure using their thumb.

I've never found an absolute definitive answer.

Answer 4

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Answer 5

In medieval times, I believe, the law was, that a man could not hit his wife with an instrument bigger than his thumb.

Answer 6

i think some bloke named tom made it up,or his wife thumbellina.or another common theory is that it came from ye olde England and was a law about not hitting your anchor(wife)with nothing bigger than the width or diameter of a thumb.

Answer 7

England you could not hit your wife with a stick larger in diameter than your thumb

Answer 8

Wikipedia has a long explanation. You can check it out here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_of_thumb#Origin_of_the_term

Answer 9

check the site:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_of_thumb