trigger finger

noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"trigger-finger" is a 13-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“trigger finger” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
14
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - a finger used in pulling the trigger of a firearm

Corpus desk

Index EN-trigger-finger · trigger finger · English

trigger finger · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 14 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "T" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for trigger finger
PropertyValue
Headwordtrigger finger
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters14
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “trigger finger” in English

trigger fingerranks outside the top 100,000 English headwords, in the long tail of specialist, archaic, or seldom-used vocabulary, exactly the territory where a reader stops mid-sentence to double-check spelling.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

trigger finger is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for trigger finger, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From trigger + finger. The correct English form is trigger finger, spelled T-R-I-G-G-E-R- -F-I-N-G-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    a finger used in pulling the trigger of a firearm
  2. 2
    the forefinger
  3. 3
    difficulty encountered in finger flexion or extension caused by the narrowing of the sheath that surrounds that finger's tendon

Etymology

From trigger + finger.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "trigger finger"?
"trigger finger" is spelled T-R-I-G-G-E-R- -F-I-N-G-E-R.
What does "trigger finger" mean?
As a noun, "trigger finger" means: a finger used in pulling the trigger of a firearm
What is the origin of the word "trigger finger"?
From trigger + finger. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list