Signing Savvy, Your Sign Language Resource

This article is part of our “Signs That Are Close... But Not the Same” series, which highlights signs that look similar, but have different meanings.

The ASL signs shown below look similar, but are not the same. There are many ASL signs that when produced look similar, but in fact have a completely different meaning. Below you will find examples of such signs. Watch closely to see if you can see the differences. In addition, watch my eyebrows, look to see when I tilt my head or lean my body in a certain way, even what my mouth is doing. These nuances are called inflections and trust me, inflections matter.

These examples are all signs related to school subjects.

1. School vs. Paper

SCHOOL and PAPER look very similar because both hands are in the open B handshape with the non-dominant hand palm up and the dominant hand palm down. The movement is also close… but not the same.

• SCHOOL: The dominant hand claps down onto the palm of the non-dominant hand two times. Think of a teacher clapping their hands for attention. This sign was documented as far back as 1885. It was previously signed with the hands vertical, and came from the old practice of school teachers clapping their hands to get their deaf students’ attention. The sign has shifted to the hands being horizontal, however, some older Deaf people still hold their hands vertically when signing SCHOOL.¹
• PAPER: The dominant hand brushes along the palm of the non-dominant hand toward the body two times. Think of a page coming loose from a pile of paper. The sign for PAPER is the same as the French sign for IMPRIMER (print). It was described in 1865 as “press the palm of the right (dominant) hand on the palm of the left (non-dominant) as if to print and imprint.”¹

2. College vs. University

COLLEGE and UNIVERSITY have the hands in the same location, with the non-dominant palm facing the body in front of the torso, and the dominant palm facing outward toward the non-dominant hand.

The movement is also the same, with the dominant hand moving down to the non-dominant hand and making a counter-clockwise C movement. Both signs have the non-dominant hand in the open B handshape.

• COLLEGE: The dominant hand is in the open B handshape. When making the movement of the sign, think of college as being another level above high school. This sign evolved from a compound sign of SCHOOL and ABOVE to describe a level above regular school.¹
• UNIVERSITY: The dominant hand is in the U handshape. Think of the non-dominant hand as a book and of studying from a book when in university classes. This is an initialized form of the sign for COLLEGE. Think of the first initial of this word to remember the handshape for the dominant hand.

3. Major vs. Minor

MAJOR and MINOR have both hands in the B handshape with the palms each facing sideways toward the center of the body. The fingertips of the dominant hand begin at the wrist of the non-dominant hand and slide forward.

• MAJOR: The dominant hand is on top. Think of major being a top priority.
• MINOR: The dominant hand is on the bottom. Think of minor as being less important.

4. Math vs. Algebra vs. Geometry

The location and movement of the hands are the same when signing MATH, ALGEBRA, and GEOMETRY. The palms face the center of the body, with arms held horizontally. The dominant hand is on top. Both hands move towards and brush past each other two times.

Each sign uses a different handshape. Think of the first initial of the word to remember which handshape to use for each sign.

• MATH: Both hands are in the M handshape. Think of the first initial of this word to remember the handshape.
• ALGEBRA: Both hands are in the A handshape. This is an initialized form of the sign for MATH. Think of the first initial of this word to remember the handshape.
• GEOMETRY: Both hands are in the G handshape. This is an initialized form of the sign for MATH. Think of the first initial of this word to remember the handshape.

5. Science vs. Biology vs. Chemistry vs. Experiment

Like in the previous example, the location and movement of the hands are the same when signing SCIENCE, BIOLOGY, CHEMISTRY, and EXPERIMENT. Both hands are in front of the torso and move in alternating downward circles.

Each sign uses a different handshape.

• SCIENCE: Both hands are in the 10 handshape, with the palms and thumbs facing downward. The origins of this sign say the thumbs were an iconic representation of pipettes used to pour liquids together during science experiments.¹
• BIOLOGY: Both hands are in the B handshape, with the palms facing away from the body. This is an initialized form of the sign for SCIENCE. Think of the first initial of this word to remember the handshape.
• CHEMISTRY: Both hands are in the C handshape, with the palms facing away from the body. This is an initialized form of the sign for SCIENCE. Think of the first initial of this word to remember the handshape.
• EXPERIMENT: Both hands are in the E handshape, with the palms facing away from the body. This is an initialized form of the sign for SCIENCE. Think of the first initial of this word to remember the handshape.

6. History vs. Historic

HISTORY and HISTORIC both use the dominant hand in the H handshape, with the palm toward center, on the dominant side of the body.

The movement is close… but not the same, for these two signs.

• HISTORY: Bounces up and down slightly two times. Think of your history repeating itself (cyclical over time).
• HISTORIC: Swooshes down quickly and bounces back up slightly. Think of a one-time event in history.

7. Doctor vs. Nursing / Nurse vs. Psychiatrist vs. Pulse

DOCTOR, NURSING / NURSE, PSYCHIATRIST, and PULSE all have the non-dominant hand resting palm up at about waist level, while the dominant hand with the palm down touches the non-dominant wrist. Think of the motion of taking someone’s pulse.

• DOCTOR: The dominant hand is in the open bent B handshape and taps the non-dominant wrist twice. The sign for DOCTOR that uses the M handshape comes from the French sign for MÉDECIN (doctor). It was described in 1785 as “check[ing] the pulse.”¹ It is also common to see an initialized form of the sign for DOCTOR that uses the D handshape.
• NURSING / NURSE: The dominant hand is in the N handshape and taps the non-dominant wrist twice. NURSING / NURSE is an initialized form of the sign for DOCTOR. Think of the first initial of the word to remember the handshape.
• PSYCHIATRIST: The dominant hand is in the P handshape and taps the non-dominant wrist twice. PSYCHIATRIST is an initialized form of the sign for DOCTOR. Think of the first initial of the word to remember the handshape.
• PULSE: The dominant hand is in the B handshape and touches the non-dominant wrist once and then holds its position.

8. Law vs. Rule vs. Policy vs. Formula vs. Testament vs. State vs. List

LAW, RULE, POLICY, FORMULA, TESTAMENT, STATE, and LIST have both hands in front of the torso. All of the signs, except LIST have the palms facing center. The dominant hand taps the top and then the bottom of the non-dominant flat hand.

The dominant hand uses a different handshape for each of these signs.

• LAW: The dominant hand is in the L handshape. Think of the first initial of the word to remember the handshape. Think of the motion as laws being written on paper. An early version of the sign for LAW was similar to today’s version, but it had the dominant index finger (instead of L handshape) hit the non-dominant palm multiple times. It originated from the old French sign for LOI (law) where documentation in 1865 said the non-dominant hand represented a tablet of laws while the index finger symbolized the articles written on the tablet. It is believed that the L handshape was adopted as early as 1885 when the L handshape was used when signing the “LAW” in BROTHER-IN-LAW.¹
• RULE: The dominant hand is in the R handshape. Think of the first initial of the word to remember the handshape.
• POLICY: The dominant hand is in the P handshape. Think of the first initial of the word to remember the handshape.
• FORMULA: The dominant hand is in the F handshape. Think of the first initial of the word to remember the handshape.
• TESTAMENT: The dominant hand is in the T handshape. Think of the first initial of the word to remember the handshape.
• STATE: The dominant hand is in the S handshape. Think of the first initial of the word to remember the handshape.
• LIST: The dominant hand is in the bent B handshape. Think of indicating items listed on a paper. The palm of the non-dominant hand faces the body.

9. Music vs. Share

MUSIC and SHARE both have two hands in the open B handshape with the non-dominant hand resting near the waist, palm facing the body, and the dominant hand with the palm facing center, swinging back and forth.

MUSIC: The dominant hand movement takes place more towards the non-dominant side of the body — past the non-dominant hand and just above the non-dominant arm.
SHARE: The dominant hand movement takes place across the top of the non-dominant hand.

 10. Psychology vs. Bother

PSYCHOLOGY and BOTHER have both hands in the open B handshape. The dominant hand has the palm facing center.

The palm orientation of the non-dominant hand and the movement made when signing is different for each of these signs.

• PSYCHOLOGY: The non-dominant hand has the palm facing away from the body. The dominant hand taps between the thumb and index finger of the non-dominant hand. There are two theories on the origins of the sign for PSYCHOLOGY and both may be true. First, the sign may have evolved from the old French sign PSYCHOLOGIE (psychology), which had the fingers of the right hand go through the open spaces of the fingers of the left hand to represent seeing a cross-section of the patient’s spirit, and related to the idea of transparency. Today’s French sign for PSYCHOLOGY is the same as the ASL sign. The other theory is that the sign represents the Greek letter / symbol for psi, the symbol used for PSYCHOLOGY around the world.¹
• BOTHER: The non-dominant hand has the palm facing the body. The dominant hand moves forward and lands on the top of the non-dominant hand. The sign is a visual metaphor for what it means to bother someone with the origins of the sign linked to the description of signing COME BETWEEN in 1885 and described again in 1910 as “interrupt, interfere with, come between.”¹

11. Business vs. Busy

BUSINESS and BUSY are very similar. They both have the non-dominant hand, with the palm down, rest in front of the body in the B handshape, while the dominant hand with the palm facing away from the body is in the B handshape. The dominant hand slides back and forth across the non-dominant hand.

The movement in the two signs is close… but not the same.

• BUSINESS: The movement of the dominant hand is wider and not as fast when signing BUSINESS as compared to BUSY.
• BUSY: The movement of the dominant hand is in short, fast little movements. As you quickly move your hand back and forth, think “busy, busy, busy, busy” and how when you are busy it feels like you are in a rush and don’t stop.

12. Religion vs. Sensitive

RELIGION and SENSITIVE are signed with the dominant hand touching the front of the non-dominant side of the chest where the heart is, and then twisting outward.

The handshapes used are different for each of these signs.

• RELIGION: The R handshape is used. Think of the first initial of the word to remember the handshape. An earlier version of the sign for RELIGION, recorded as early as 1910, started at the heart and then swung out and up toward God in heaven. The sign evolved to start at the heart and swing out from the body, but not toward the sky.¹
• SENSITIVE: The open 8 handshape is used.

How can I figure out the difference between signs on my own?

If you see two signs that look close, but not the same, and you’re not sure, you may use Signing Savvy features to help you figure out the difference. All of our signs have sign descriptions and memory aids that members may access. Reading the sign description and memory aids for the signs will help you figure out the small differences between them that your eyes don’t catch at first. We also recommend using the pause and slow motion feature to slow down the video, so you may take a closer look. These features are available to Signing Savvy members.

Resources

1. Shaw, E. & Delaporte, Y. (2014). A Historical and Etymological Dictionary of American Sign Language. Washington: Gallaudet University Press.