Making signs plural or in the past tense

By John Miller
Wednesday, July 14, 2010

We have received several emails asking how to make signed words plural or showing if something happened in the past, as well as having emphasis to show desire.

There are a few different ways to do this:

One way to show an emphasis or plurals is to repeat the sign. For example, if you are wanting to say “He wants that really bad!” You would sign WANT+WANT+THAT+HE. That double use of the sign want shows that he really wants it. You would NOT sign the word bad because it has a different meaning in this sentence. The double signing of want also makes it a plural.
Showing something happened in the past can be done by making a gesture of throwing it over your shoulder. This is using the sign space that refers to the past. (Use the 5-hand with the palm facing backward, moving in a backward direction).
You can also sign FINISH after a sign to show that it happened in the past. For example, if you want to say "He wanted to go." You could sign GO+HE+WANT+FINISH.
There is an English signing method that has you add the S or ED or ING ending to the words but this is not as widely used and is actually frowned upon by most people who use American Sign Language. The more appropriate method is to determine what is meant and translate it accordingly. For example, if you want to say "He is left wanting." You could sign HE+WANT+MORE+STILL.

Happy Signing!

View/Add Comments (17 comments)

Comments

Pst and Plural

Savvy User AmySaturday, July 17, 2010

Just wanted to say thanks for this discussion of signing technigue. I sign "Pidgin" Signed English and I appreciate you're including number 4 that helps me and my students.

Could you do a blog on directional signs?

Thanks!

Amy

Directional Sighs

John @ Signing SavvySunday, July 18, 2010

Sure Amy....I'll add that to my list of topics...thanks!

Clarification

Savvy User MicheleSunday, July 18, 2010

Hi I don't want to split hairs, but the word "wants" as used in your example sentence is not a plural noun. I agree signing "want want" is a good way to show the emphasis of desire for a certain item, but you are not describing a plurality.

That sentence is of emphasis

John @ Signing SavvySunday, July 18, 2010

Thanks for your comment. That example was of to show emphasis, not plurality. Please don't split my hairs.....it's getting thin enough as it is!

Tiffani

Savvy User tiffaniMonday, July 19, 2010

Hi John, this has nothing to do with showing how to make signs plural, but I just wanted you to please explain to me why sign language is backwards? Im teaching myself sign(have been for years) but, Im one of those people that must know why... I still dont understand why after all the webclasses and books I've read. To fully understand asl I cant just sign because Im suppose to sign it this way. Please I cant take this automatic pilot. Please help me, my daughter is 9 and deaf...I must know. Thank you very much.

Tiffani Response

John @ Signing SavvyTuesday, July 20, 2010

Tiffani I guess I need to know what you are thinking of by backwards??? If you mean that what you are looking at in the books is opposite hands than what you see...remember the mirror idea, just like when you are doing exercises on a video. You may also experience someone who is left hand dominant signing. Maybe that is what you are referring to? Fill me in a bit more and maybe either myself or some of our other members can come up with an answer for you. Thanks

ASL Backwards

Savvy User AmyTuesday, July 20, 2010

Perhaps Tiffani is commenting on the grammar word order in ASL. ASL doesn't not use English word order as it is, in fact, its own unique whole language. ASL is not simply a reflection of English and as such has its own grammar rules. You can compare it to English vs. French - each has its own rules of speech. There are other sign systems that try to approximate English. Each with varying degrees of acceptance. Signed English is one. If this is the case, perhaps it would be better to base your selection of a signing system on the one your daughter is using the majority of the time.

Amy

ing verbs

Savvy User kristenTuesday, July 20, 2010

I have a question regarding ing verbs. e.g. when signing- I AM LEARNING SIGN- you would sign- I LEARN + LEARN SIGN. Are all ing verbs signed this way?

Barb

Savvy User BarbaraThursday, July 22, 2010

Is there anyway to down load the signing videos? I would like to be able to practice without have to set on the internet as well as I sometimes connect my computer to my TV for a larger clearer picture.

Tiffani

Savvy User tiffaniThursday, July 22, 2010

Sorry if I confused anyone and yes I was referring to the word order in ASL. I just do not get the word order is there a website or can someone explain it to me better...please!!!Thank you for responding I really appreciate it.

Tiffani

Savvy User lynelleFriday, July 23, 2010

Here is a quick reference to ASL word order that my Instructor showed us:
Time-Topic-Comment-WH question word.
Also, I would suggest checking out your local Community College for ASL classes, if that is an option.

ASL Word Order

Savvy User AmyFriday, July 23, 2010

First, let me say that my signing background is 'pidgon' Signed English that I learned in an academic environment. Next the ASL knowledge I have is from classes and not from living it.

My understanding is that the ASL sentence structure is roughly like this:

First, the time is established. Time in the sense that the conversation is about something that happened in the past, the present or the future. This eliminates the problem of conjugating verbs. For example, there would be no "danced", "dance" or "will dance". Once the time context is established the verb is always just 'dance'. True "Signed English" or "Seeing Exact English" would have you add endings to the verb to show past or future.

Next, would be an introduction of the players in the sentence. In the sentence "Jimmy walked the dog." Jimmy and the dog would be signed. The order of the introduction would be the order of their appearance in the sentence. So Jimmy would be signed first and then the dog.

Next, in this simple sentence, would be the verb - walk.

This would be the complete sign string for Jimmy walked the dog. Past Jimmy dog walk.

Let me know if I've gotten this wrong but that's how I think it goes.

Amy

Good Job team!

John @ Signing SavvySaturday, July 24, 2010

Well there you go Tiffani, I think together the other users of the site have pretty well answered your question. ASL word order can be a tricky one. It will get better the more you see it and use it, but remember like others have said, there are always different variations that are also acceptable. (pidgon, etc...)

ASL Word Order

SigningSavvy User AllieMonday, July 26, 2010

If you're looking for good reference on word order, the book "American Sign Language the Easy Way" is a good book. The first quarter of the book describes the grammar involved in sign language. However, Amy had some pretty good tips!

Using ASL Order

Savvy User KathiThursday, July 29, 2010

So basically using ASL wording. The words like, is, it, the, a, are not used, usually. You skip all the non-essential words?

Re: Using ASL Order

Savvy User AndrewThursday, July 29, 2010

Exactly, Kathi. There is no ASL sign for "is/am/are." You just act like it's not there, so "I'm tired" is simply signed I TIRED. "A/An" isn't necessary if you're signing something like "A man shot me" but if you're using it to indicate 1 of something or to be emphatic, you would sign 1. If "the" is being used as in "I'm going to the store," it's not needed, but if it's emphatic then you might want to use the sign "that."

ASL Order

Savvy User DawnSunday, May 26, 2013

I am currently enrolled in ASL 1 at Washington State University. Our Professor explains the ASL word order as follows:

Time, Place, Person, Object, Verb.

One of the first exercises that she had us complete was to rewrite English structured sentences in ASL word order. I found this to be very helpful as we've progressed further into the class, and have often referred back to this.