# Sign language question (not sure if ASL) **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 4, 2001, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sign-language-question-not-sure-if-asl/96740 "2001-12-04T00:24:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2001, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sign-language-question-not-sure-if-asl/96740/1 "2001-12-04T00:24:58Z")
How does one say ‘thank you’ in sign language? My young daughter suddenly told me the other day “this is how you say ‘thank you’ in sign language” - she held her hands out with the tips of her index fingers toouching each other and the same with the tips of her thumbs, making a diamond shape. I have no idea where she learned this (or if she just made it up); I live in the UK, so it probably wouldn’t be American Sign Language, but I’m not sure. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2001, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sign-language-question-not-sure-if-asl/96740/2 "2001-12-04T00:33:21Z")
According to [http://www.britishsignlanguage.com/](http://www.britishsignlanguage.com/) that’s not the British Sign Language way to say thank you. Look under “List of words.” ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2001, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sign-language-question-not-sure-if-asl/96740/3 "2001-12-04T00:38:38Z")
Thanks. Seems likely that she just made it up then (she does have an active imagination). ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Onimous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@Ann\_Onimous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Onimous)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2001, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sign-language-question-not-sure-if-asl/96740/4 "2001-12-04T00:39:13Z")
Not ASL. ASL thank you is touching the tips of your fingers to your mouth or chin, palm facing inward, then bringing it down, palm up or pointing to the person you are speaking to. I don’t know what sign that triangle thing is. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2001, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sign-language-question-not-sure-if-asl/96740/5 "2001-12-04T16:32:15Z")
Oh my!.. Well, I must put this rather delicately, but that ‘triangle’ thing is ASL for a woman’s privates. If done with the other three fingers extended a little & wiggling you got a woman’s orgasm. I don’t make this up. I don’t know about BSL but that’s ASL. I have a book on Sexual signs which show it that way. So, perhaps you should have her change that sign soon? I do hope so. ‘good’ & thank you are pretty much the same in ASL. You just touch your hand to your mouth & bring it forward. Say, sometimes I teach people dirty signs for ‘thank you’ as a joke so this might be what happened. They shouldn’t teach it to a young person though, thats pretty rude. Is that really thank you in BSL? ---
**Author:** ![Spritle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Spritle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spritle)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2001, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sign-language-question-not-sure-if-asl/96740/6 "2001-12-04T16:39:44Z")
And be very careful with the sign for “lunch”!! It’s real close to another baddie. You wouldn’t want to tell your friend that you want to eat a lesbian. (or would you…) ---
**Author:** ![Zazie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Zazie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zazie)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2001, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sign-language-question-not-sure-if-asl/96740/7 "2001-12-04T19:27:23Z")
So “please” in British means “thanks” in American!!! (I went to see the link). In French sign language, thank you is the same as the American thank you like Juliana describes. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2001, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sign-language-question-not-sure-if-asl/96740/8 "2001-12-05T00:07:17Z")
More than all the ASL you might want to know in pictures: [http://commtechlab.msu.edu/sites/aslweb/browser.htm](http://commtechlab.msu.edu/sites/aslweb/browser.htm) Terrific site, really. “So “please” in British means “thanks” in American???” Hmmmm, I don’t know about that one. ---
**Author:** ![Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2001, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sign-language-question-not-sure-if-asl/96740/9 "2001-12-05T02:57:47Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Carine \* > \*\*So “please” in British means “thanks” in American!!! (I went to see the link). > In French sign language, thank you is the same as the American thank you like Juliana describes. \*\* Oddly enough, ASL has more in common with French sign language than British, for historical reasons. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2001, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sign-language-question-not-sure-if-asl/96740/10 "2001-12-05T16:08:39Z")
I have a book that shows variations in signs for the same word in just the USA. Some words have like 14 signs with regional variations. I can’t imagine how many there are world-wide.