elbow bump

noun

plural elbow bumps
: a gesture in which two people bump their elbows together especially as an alternative to a handshake
It was before the public was told to wear masks, before the elbow bump became the new handshake, before all of the symptoms were known.CNN Wire
Vice President Mike Pence and his wife, Karen, also attended the ceremony in New York, and he chatted with Mr. Biden, trading an elbow bump in lieu of a handshake, a nod to the pandemic.Annie Karni et al.

Examples of elbow bump in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
And tell your baby to elbow bump other babies rather than shake hands. Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes, 23 Oct. 2024 In London’s financial district, not even a global pandemic, lockdowns, and new levels of respect for colleagues’ personal space (remember the elbow bump?) were enough to kill Wolf of Wall Street-era antics. Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 25 Apr. 2024 Does anyone still elbow bump? Petula Dvorak, Washington Post, 13 Apr. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1981, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of elbow bump was in 1981

Dictionary Entries Near elbow bump

Cite this Entry

“Elbow bump.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/elbow%20bump. Accessed 26 Nov. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!