A rule of thumb is a principle with broad application that is not intended to be strictly accurate or reliable for every situation. It is an easily learned and easily applied procedure for approximately calculating or recalling some value, or for making some determination. Compare this to heuristic, a similar concept used in mathematical discourse, psychology, and computer science, particularly in algorithm design.
Read more about Rule Of Thumb: Origin of The Phrase, Thumb As Measurement Device, Thumb Used For Regulation, Examples of Usage
Famous quotes containing the words rule and/or thumb:
“There were some schools, so called [in my youth]; but no qualification was ever required of a teacher, beyond “readin, writin, and cipherin,” to the Rule of Three. If a straggler supposed to understand latin, happened to sojourn in the neighborhood, he was looked upon as a wizzard. There was absolutely nothing to excite ambition for education.”
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)
“Give a lift to a tomato, you expect her to be nice, don’t ya? After all, what kind of dames thumb rides, Sunday school teachers?”
—Martin Goldsmith, and Edgar G. Ulmer. Charles Haskell, Jr. (Edmund MacDonald)