Purposive

Chef’s Kiss (Italy)
- This gesture is used to communicate that something is perfect or exquisite. It is done

by holding all your fingers together and bringing your hand to your mouth to kiss your
fingertips, then moving your fingertips away from each other to open up your hand as
you move your hand away from your face.
- Italians have a rich culture that they are very proud of and are also very expressive
and use many hand gestures when they speak. They use this gesture to convey the
perfection of their food or of anything else. This hand gesture is used very often and
generally expresses annoyance or confusion.
Let’s Go Now (Trinidad)

- It is performed by slapping the back of one’s hand into the other to make a loud
sound, and then pulling the arms apart. It varies by how hard you slap the back of
your hand into the other and how far you extend your arms at the end- the harder
and faster one slaps, the more urgent the need to depart. Also, this hand gesture
could be accompanied by facial expressions to further accentuate the urgency.
- Trinidadians are very expressive in general, but they also have a lot of respect for
their elders/family/people they are speaking to. They never want to come across as
rude by interrupting someone and saying that they need to leave. It’s a good way to
catch the other person’s attention right away, as it’s very visible, and can easily
demonstrate how urgent the person wants to leave.
Shaka (Hawaii)
- This hand gesture often involves a slightly bent elbow and begins with the palm
facing out. The three middle fingers are bent while the pinky and thumb are pointed
straight out.
- They use this gesture as a sign of positive affirmation, it’s a fun way to signal that
everything is okay, so we think it was easily spread and accepted as a way to say
that everything sounds good.
Bad Joke (Peru)

- This gesture is used after someone just told a bad joke. Someone points at the joker,
and then in a swift & connecting motion, points at the door. At the same time, the
person pointing says “ya se fue, ya se fue.” which means “you should leave” as a
harmless joke, because the joker just delivered a horrible joke, or one that wasn’t
funny.
- Peruvians love to make pranks and harmlessly joke around, so this parallels their
vibrant energy. Generally, since the person who told the joke knows that this gesture
and expression is also a joke, it is meant to make light of a funny/failed situation, and
to make things less awkward. This shows that they are also witty/don’t take things
too seriously, and are playful in nature.
Dame (Japan)
- This gesture is performed by holding one’s arms out in front of one’s chest, bent at
the elbow and crossing them so they meet at a 90 degree angle, resembling an X.
The performer then taps their wrists together twice and accompanies the gesture by
speaking the word “Dame”, which means “No” in Japanese.
Money (Mexico)
- The gesture is performed by forming a “U” shape with the thumb and forefinger, while
keeping the palm facing your chest. The gesture is most commonly understood to
mean an item is expensive, being an appropriate response to somebody asking why
you did not buy something, for instance.
Finger Mudras (India)

- The Abhaya Mudra is one of the most ubiquitous Mudras both within meditation and
religious iconography, and it is most commonly performed by sitting and holding your
right-hand upright with the fingers together and the palm facing out. Within the
context of Buddhism, this gesture is meant to convey protection, peace, and the
dispelling of fear. There are a vast number of variations of this Mudra across
cultures, for instance, in Thailand and Laos it is performed uniformly in a standing
position with both right and left hands presented.
Okay Sign
- It is performed by the tips of your thumb and index finger touching each other to form
a circle and your other three fingers pointing straight up in the air.
- In most Western countries, this gesture is a very positive one and means “All is
good/okay”. It can also be used as a question, again to ask “is everything okay?”.
- The gesture means the number zero, in France.
- When used in the Middle East, it has a very negative connotation, as it indicates the
evil eye and is often accompanied with cursing.
Horn Fingers
- In the USA, this gesture is adopted by rockers and it is a sign of approval, rock on!
- In Mediterranean and Latin countries, such as Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba,
Spain, Italy and Portugal, to make this sign at someone is to tell them that their
spouse is cheating on them.
Looking at your watch

- This means ‘I’m in a hurry’ or ‘I’ve got to be somewhere’.
- In the Middle East, a conversation should run its natural course, as it would be very
rude to look at your watch mid-conversation. In Arabic culture, once communication
has started, it must “take its time”.

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Chef’s Kiss (Italy)

- This gesture is used to communicate that something is perfect or exquisite. It is done

Let’s Go Now (Trinidad)

Bad Joke (Peru)

Finger Mudras (India)

Looking at your watch

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