Appendix:Gestures

The gestures below are meaningful expressions produced with parts of the body, but excluding speech. All are used outside of the context of a sign language. Some have specific referents, some emphasize accompanying vocal speech, and some express feelings, including contempt, hostility, approval, and affection.

List of gestures

A tense argument. These gestures are described here as "pointing up" and "calm down".

ILY sign

One person

One hand

• air kiss
• air punch: fist punching upward into the air; suggests victory or triumph
• akanbe (pulling eyelid down with finger, indicates mockery -- see akanbe on Wikipedia. same gesture indicates disbelief in France: "mon œil!"; see Eyelid pull)
• beckon
  • index finger beckon (point the index finger upwards, waggle it towards yourself)
  • palm-down beckon (Japanese beckon with the four fingers facing down, waggle the hand toward yourself)
• bicep kiss (kissing one's own biceps)
• blowing a kiss (see air kiss)
• calm down (using one's open hand to try to ask someone to calm down)
• check for rain (palm out and upward)
• chef's kiss
• chin stroking
• claw hand (imitating claws, with all five fingers flexed at once)
• clenched hand
• come here (see above: beckon)
• corna (see sign of the horns)
• cuckoo sign (circling motion of the index finger at the side of the ear or head)
• drink (raising hand to mouth as if drinking: asks a person whether they want another drink, e.g. in a noisy pub; or suggests another person is a drunkard)
• facepalm (covering part of one's face with an open hand, palm turned inward: indicates embarrassment, frustration, exasperation, or disappointment, directed at one's self, someone else, or the situation in general)
• fig sign
• finger gun (extending one's thumb and forefinger from a clenched fist to form a gun-like L-shape: used in emphasis/agreement, as in "That statement hits the bullseye;" also a casual nonverbal greeting often used in passing)
• finger in collar
• finger muzzle (put finger to someone else's lips)
• finger snapping
• finger wag (wagging finger as in "no")
• fingers crossed (index and middle fingers extended from a loose fist with one finger wrapped around the other; used to wish for good luck; also may be concealed during a conversation and then used jokingly to excuse a spoken lie ("That thing I said wasn't really true, but it doesn't count because I had my fingers crossed")
• fist pump
• flipping the bird (see middle finger)
• forgetfulness (hand to the top of the head, indicates forgetfulness)
• gagging
• go away
  • open-palm go away (Japanese gesture, shake the open palm to make someone go away)
  • shoo (hand facing downward, wiggle the hand or the four fingers to make someone go away)
• hair flip (flipping one's long hair, indicates confidence)
• halt (see open hand)
• hand behind head (indicates embarassment)
• hand over mouth
  • hand over mouth (disgust) (indicates disgust)
  • hand over mouth (thinking) (covering the mouth with the hand while thinking, possibly to suppress what one is saying or thinking of saying)
• hand on womb (indicates pregnancy)
• hand over heart
• hat tip
• hitch-hiking thumb
• horns (see sign of the horns)
• ILY sign
• looking far away (put your open palm horizontally above your eyes and look into the distance)
• knocking on wood (rapping the knuckles of one's closed fist on wood of some kind, e.g. a table or wall or tree, or one's own head if no real wood is available: a superstitious gesture used to ward off bad luck/unfavorable outcomes, particularly after someone "jinxes" a potential good outcome by verbalizing the hope or expectation, e.g. "There's no way our team can blow this lead!" "Knock on wood!!" rapraprap)
• listen (hand cupped behind ear)
• middle finger (fully extend one's middle finger from a closed fist, pointing upwards: a vulgar insult directed at another person, equivalent to "Fuck you," and considered socially inappropriate in the same environments where spoken profanity would be deemed so)
• modest hand block (shake one or two hands with the palm facing the other person, to deny a compliment)
• money (rubbing the tips of the thumb and the index finger together)
• my lips are sealed (slide the tips of your thumb and index finger along your mouth, as if you could close your mouth with a zipper; indicates keeping a secret)
• numbers
  • one
  • two
  • three
  • four
  • five
• okay
• open hand
• palm on cheek
• paw pose (hand(s) curled, imitating a cat or dog's paws)
• pinky out
• pointing
  • pointing at nose (Japanese "I", "me")
  • declarative finger (used when saying something one believes to be important)
  • pointing at eyes, then at listener (I'm watching you)
• power fist (fist clenched at the sky)
• puke finger (expresses disgust)
• raise hand
• reaching
• rock, paper, scissors:
  • paper
  • rock
  • scissors
• salutes:
  • Nazi salute
  • Roman salute
  • two-finger salute
  • Vulcan salute
• screw loose (see cuckoo sign)
• self-bottom smack (self-bottom smack, used to ridicule)
• shaka sign
• shaking fist
• shocker
• shoulder tap (tapping someone on the shoulder)
• shushing
• sign of the cross
• sign of the horns
• silly me (hitting oneself softly on the head, indicating one's own silliness)
• small
• sneeze finger (erect finger horizontally under nose)
• stop (see open hand)
• so-so or maybe gesture (hand is held parallel to the ground, palm down, and rocked slightly.)
• take my hand
• talk to the hand (see open hand)
• talking (using one hand to imitate a mouth opening and closing; indicates a talkative person)
• telephone (extended thumb and little finger beside the face, imitating a telephone with earpiece and mouthpiece)
• they're the same (used in Brazil, rub the index and the middle finger together to indicate that two people are the same in some way)
• thinker pose (as in The Thinker statue)
• this way please
• throat slash (moving the index finger across the neck)
• thumbing the nose
• thumbs up
  • thumbs down
• V-sign
  • reverse V-sign
  • V-sign around tongue (perform the V-sign with a finger on either side of your extended tongue, indicates cunnilingus)
• wanker
• waving
• whisper hide (hide your mouth with an open hand to the side, indicates whispering)
• woe is me (placing the back of the hand to the forehead)

Two hands

• air quotes
• awkward turtle
• applause
  • sarcastic clapping (which tends to be slower)
• bicep rubbing (flexing one's arm and rubbing the biceps)
• both hands over face (1. childish, someone counting while playing hide-and-seek; 2. covers the eyes and face, may indicate profound discomfort with what one would see, or some trauma/sadness, hiding one's urge to cry, etc.)
• breasts (using the two hands, in a gesture imitating a person holding one's own breasts)
• carry me
• change the subject (get an invisible box from the sides with your open palms and put the box away to the side, indicating a change of subject)
• chest pound
• crossed arms
• dusting off the hands (sometimes expressing completion: "that's that")
• The crossed hands (gesture) (duart e kryqëzuara), representing the double-headed eagle that denotes Albania
• fake ears/horns with the two hands:
  • bunny ear (hands open above head, imitating bunny ears)
  • index finger horns (both hands closed, at the sides of the head, except the index fingers, which are pointing upwards imitating horns)
• finger frame (making a rectangular frame with the thumb and index finger of both hands)
• finger tenting
  • fingertip tenting (fingerstips touching at mouth level, indicating contemplation)
  • interlocked finger tenting (fingers interlocked at mouth level, indicating contemplation)
• five fathers (insulting a person by suggesting that their mother was sexually promiscuous)
• fist to the palm (hit the palm of one hand with the closed fist of the other)
• gorilla pound (see chest pound)
• hand blocker (block the way using your two hands, indicates that you don't want something)
• hand rubbing
• hands up
• head clutch (hands to ears, indicating loud noise)
• heart hands (two hands forming a heart)
• namaste (namaste gesture common in India)
• palms-together apology (Japanese "gomen!" with the two palms together)
• penetration (index finger penetrating an OK-sign)
• psychic instance (fingers to the temples, imitating psychic powers; also used to indicate that one is thinking hard)
• religion:
  • Jewish blessing
  • locked fingers (as in praying with interlocked fingers)
  • praying hands (praying with the palms together)
  • raised-hands worship (both hands raised in worship)
• Tarzan pound (see chest pound)
• this big (index fingers raised a distance apart, to show the size of something; e.g. a fish one caught)
• tips of index fingers touching each other (indicates shyness)
• typing (wiggle your fingers in a typing motion, indicates typing on a keyboard)
• victory clasp (raising the hands clasped in victory)
• vulva sign (making a diamond shape between extended thumbs and fingers to symbolise a vulva)
• what have I done (looking at one's own palms in realization of something done)
• white power (shaping one hand like the letter W and the other like P)
• wristwatch (point at your arm as if you had a wristwatch, indicates asking "what time is it?")
• writing (wiggle your hand as if you were writing with a pen on the palm of your other hand; this indicates that you are going to need a writing instrument)
• zombie pose (both hands reaching forward, imitating a zombie or unrealistic stereotypical sleepwalker)

Moving the head

• headdesk
• head shake
• nod
• upwards nod

Parts of the head

• eyes:
  • death glare
  • evil eye
  • frown
  • puppy dog eyes
  • raised eyebrow
  • wink
• mouth:
  • blowing a raspberry
  • jaw drop
  • puffed cheeks (childish, indicates frustration)
  • smile
  • spitting
  • tongue out
    • tongue out with hands beside head (tongue sticking out with open hands next to sides of head with palms facing forwards and fingers spread, with thumbs near or touching temples)
  • vomit (cheeks puffed out, possibly with hand in front; suggests that one is nauseous or repulsed)
• nose:
  • wrinkled nose

Whole body, or legs/torso

• bowing
• curtsey
• dogeza
• fetal position
• kneeling
  • genuflection (one knee to the ground)
• kowtow
• shrug
  • shrug with forearms extended to sides

Other parts of the body

• chicken - imitating a chicken
• mooning
• tick a lock
• cock a snook

Using objects

• knock on door (a request for someone to open the door)
• knock on wood (superstitious gesture to avoid something bad to happen)
• throwing a towel (means surrender in boxing)
• white flag (means surrender)

Two people interacting

Only the hands or arms

• engacho (interlock circles with your index fingers and thumbs and have someone else "cut" your gesture using their hand)
• greetings:
  • bro fist (see fist bump)
  • elbow bump
  • fist bump
  • forearm clasp
  • handshake
  • high-five
  • palm-fist greeting
• holding hands
• pinky swear
• spit shake (childish, spitting on the hand and shaking hands to make an agreement)
• team hands (2 or more people put their open hands together, one on top of the other, indicates teamwork)

Other gestures

• bitch slap (slap to the front of the head of somebody else)
• dope slap (lighthearted slap to the back of the head of somebody else)
• foot kiss
• French kiss
• hand kiss
• hug
• kiss on the cheek
• kiss on the lips

Three people interacting

• see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil

Four people interacting

• see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil, do no evil

Games

Card games

• give cards to dealer (fold, in poker)
• tap table (check, in poker)

Chess

• tip over king (resignation)
• handshake offer (resignation)

Mudras

(to be filled)

See also

• Category:Sign languages
• Wikipedia:Types of gestures