Word List Author Note: Rhetorical WHY? = 'because' Eyebrows are up, and the signer will answer the question, thus giving the reason why. With this usage, WHY? (as a rhetorical question) serves as "B E C A U S E." ASL uses rhetorical questions much more than English does. Rhetorical questions in English may or may not be answered by the speaker. (ex. -- "Who wants more taxes?" There will probably not be an answer given, because it is obvious.) In ASL, rhetorical questions are answered by the signer/speaker. So, when a WH-question sign is used rhetorically, the eyebrows always (ALWAYS) go UP, indicating that the signer is not awaiting an answer. The signer will provide the answer. When asking (Rh-q)WHY?, it serves as the English word "because." Ex. -- ME HAVE UMBRELLA (Rh-q)WHY? RAIN! The English version: I have an umbrella because of the rain.
The video above is NOT a single sign, rather it is composed of multiple signs in the sentence. The sentence MAY NOT be translated from English word order to ASL syntax nor translated based on meaning.
The video above is NOT a single sign, rather it is composed of multiple signs in the sentence. The sentence MAY NOT be translated from English word order to ASL syntax nor translated based on meaning.
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