finger-licking good

Meaning

This casual expression describes food that is extremely delicious, often referring to sticky, savory, or messy foods that you eat with your hands (making you want to lick your fingers). It is highly informal and enthusiastic, famously associated with fried chicken but used widely for ribs, burgers, and pastries. It should be avoided in formal dining contexts.

Examples

• My grandma's secret barbecue sauce makes these ribs finger-licking good.

  My grandma's secret barbecue sauce makes these ribs finger-licking good.

• That glazed donut was finger-licking good; I need to go back for another one.

  That glazed donut was finger-licking good; I need to go back for another one.

• We had some finger-licking good street food at the night market yesterday.

  We had some finger-licking good street food at the night market yesterday.

• The buffalo wings were messy but absolutely finger-licking good.

  The buffalo wings were messy but absolutely finger-licking good.

• This garlic butter shrimp recipe is guaranteed to be finger-licking good.

  This garlic butter shrimp recipe is guaranteed to be finger-licking good.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ The soup was finger-licking good.

  ✓ The soup was absolutely delicious.

  "Finger-licking good" is specifically used for foods you eat with your hands. It does not make sense for soup or liquids eaten with a spoon.

• ✗ This cake is finger-lick good.

  ✓ This cake is finger-licking good.

  The idiom requires the present participle "licking" to be grammatically natural.

Related Expressions

Practice

• These barbecued chicken wings are absolutely ___!

  💡 So delicious and messy you want to clean your hands with your tongue.

  Show answer

  finger-licking good

• The street vendor served us some ___ tacos last night.

  💡 Informal idiom for tasty food eaten with hands.

  Show answer

  finger-licking good