dDeaf World

Dedicated to teaching the American Sign Language.
Click a word in menu and a movie shows how to "sign" that word.
This site also includes practice tutorials to test your skills
in learning Sign Language for the deaf.

Sponsored by Internet Stained Glass Supply

TO USE THIS PAGE (ALPHABETICAL LIST OF WORDS):

Choose selected words at the left.

You can also learn some of the numbers and the alphabet by clicking on the appropriate link.

To practice or test yourself on what you have learned, click on "Practice" at the left.

SIGNING INFORMATION
Sign Area Clear Signs ASL syntax This page ASL origin

FACIAL EXPRESSION: In signing, facial expression is very important in conveying the meaning of the communication. When signing the word "SAD" one should have a sad expression. When signing the word "HAPPY" there should be a smile to help deliver the meaning. The face, along with body language, should help give the meaning whenever possible.
SIGNING AREA: Most signs are given in front of the chest and just below the face, so that the reader can see your facial expressions while watching your signs. Try to keep the hands centered on the chest and just below the face for most general signs except when a particular sign calls for movements to other areas.
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CLEAR SIGNING Some people have the urge to move their hands in a down and up motion for each letter or word. That makes reading much harder. Generally, keep the hands still from such movements. Signs need not be overly large.
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ASL SYNTAX Strict ASL requires that the time element of a sentence, if there is one, comes first followed by the topic, then the verb etc.. As an example: in speaking one might say, "I SAW A BEAUTIFUL RED CAR YESTERDAY." If that word order were used while signing, people would not know what you are signing about until the end of the sentence.
Strict ASL uses French syntax which gives the time element, then the topic up front. This same sentence in sign language would be: "YESTERDAY CAR BEAUTIFUL RED SAW I."

Although this page uses ASL syntax most of the time and in learning ASL you need to be aware of the correct word order, you need not concern yourself too much by trying to stick strictly to that word order. Deaf and hard-of-hearing people are flexible enough to understand ASL using English syntax.
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UNDERSTANDING THIS PAGE: In this program, italic words or letters are used to describe the shape of your hand to use while making each sign. As an example "using your right p hand" means to use your right hand forming the shape of the letter "p" from the signing alphabet while making this sign. "Using your right bent hand" means to use your right hand in a bent shape while making this sign.
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ORIGIN OF THE AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet was a Philadelphia born theology student of French ancestry who became interested in helping deaf people of the United States. He went to France where a sign language was already established. After learning that language, he and a French colleague developed the American Sign Language patterned after the French version.
For this reason ASL (American Sign Language) uses French syntax. In ASL the time element, if there is one, comes first followed by the topic, then the verb etc..

After learning ASL you can most likely communicate easily with deaf French people, with only one difficulty: when letters are used in a sign, the French people will use the first letter from the French word while English speaking people will use the first letter from the English word. As an example the ASL sign for "people" uses both hands shaped like the sign letter "p," whereas the French will use both hands shaped like the sign letter "g" in the same manner, because the French word for people is "gens."

Now the good news: many words that don't require a letter in their signing; such as "good," "thank-you," "have," "know" etc.; are the same in French and American sign languages. You can speak French and didn't know it!
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HOME Practice Words listed by Parts The Alphabet The Numbers WORDS A lot About Above Act Advice Afternoon Alligator All day All night All right Alone Ambulance America USA And Angry Animal Any Anything Apple Appointment Area Arrive Ask Aunt Baby Back Bad Beautiful Bedroom Before Best Friend Bird Black Book Bored Boy Bread Breakfast Bring Brother Bus Business But Career Carry Cat Chair Cheese Chicken Can Can't Car Cheerleader Coffee Cold College Color Corn Cousin Credit card Crocodile Dairy Damage Daughter Deaf Decide Deductible Deer Different Dinner Do Doctor Dog Donkey Dont know Don't like Don't want Drive Early Eat Electric Elephant Every-day Excited Expert Explain Fall Family Farm Farmer Father Feed Feel Few Find Fine Fingerspell Finish First Fix Flower Follow Food For Forget Friend From Fun Furniture Future Gallaudett Garage Garbage Garden Gas Get Get_up Girl Go there Goat Goldfish Gone Good Grandfather Grandmother Grass Great Group Grow Hamburger Happen Happy Have Headache Health Healthy Hearing Hello Help Home Homework Hook up Horse Hospital House How Hungry Husband I love you If Important In Indian Information Insurance Interesting Kind Know Last Late Later Laundry Learn Lettuce Library Like Lion Live Love Lunch Many Marry Math Maybe Me Meat Medical Medicine Meet Milk Mixture Month Monthly Moose Morning Mother Move My Myself Name Near Need Next New York Nice Night No None Noon Nose Note Not yet Now Nurse Off Office Okay On One hundred Orange Orange juice Order Out Pain Paint Paper Park Past Pay Peach Pencil Picnic Pig Pizza Place Plant Play Please Potato Practice President Problem Question Rain Read Recently Recommend Remember Responsible Restaurant Right Rose Room Run Sad Salad Same Sandwich Say School Science Scratch Second See Seed Sell Sheep Shopping Shot Show you Sick Sign language Sister Sit Snow Son Spots Spring Stand Store Story Stubborn Student Study Supplies Sure Surgery Sympathy Talk Teach Teacher Team Telephone Tell Thank you That Thin Think Things This Tiger Time Tired To Today Tomato Tomorrow Touch Travel Tree Truck Try Two-of-you Uncle Understand University Upset Vacancy Vegetable Veterinarian Visit Wait Waitress Walk Want Wash Washing manchine Week Wife With Without What When Where Why Work Worry Wow Write Wrong Year Yes Yesterday You Your `top of page`		dDeaf World Dedicated to teaching the American Sign Language. Click a word in menu and a movie shows how to "sign" that word. This site also includes practice tutorials to test your skills in learning Sign Language for the deaf. Sponsored by Internet Stained Glass Supply TO USE THIS PAGE (ALPHABETICAL LIST OF WORDS): Choose selected words at the left. You can also learn some of the numbers and the alphabet by clicking on the appropriate link. To practice or test yourself on what you have learned, click on "Practice" at the left. SIGNING INFORMATION Sign Area Clear Signs ASL syntax This page ASL origin FACIAL EXPRESSION: In signing, facial expression is very important in conveying the meaning of the communication. When signing the word "SAD" one should have a sad expression. When signing the word "HAPPY" there should be a smile to help deliver the meaning. The face, along with body language, should help give the meaning whenever possible. SIGNING AREA: Most signs are given in front of the chest and just below the face, so that the reader can see your facial expressions while watching your signs. Try to keep the hands centered on the chest and just below the face for most general signs except when a particular sign calls for movements to other areas. `top of page` CLEAR SIGNING Some people have the urge to move their hands in a down and up motion for each letter or word. That makes reading much harder. Generally, keep the hands still from such movements. Signs need not be overly large. `top of page` ASL SYNTAX Strict ASL requires that the time element of a sentence, if there is one, comes first followed by the topic, then the verb etc.. As an example: in speaking one might say, "I SAW A BEAUTIFUL RED CAR YESTERDAY." If that word order were used while signing, people would not know what you are signing about until the end of the sentence. Strict ASL uses French syntax which gives the time element, then the topic up front. This same sentence in sign language would be: "YESTERDAY CAR BEAUTIFUL RED SAW I." Although this page uses ASL syntax most of the time and in learning ASL you need to be aware of the correct word order, you need not concern yourself too much by trying to stick strictly to that word order. Deaf and hard-of-hearing people are flexible enough to understand ASL using English syntax. `top of page` UNDERSTANDING THIS PAGE: In this program, italic words or letters are used to describe the shape of your hand to use while making each sign. As an example "using your right p hand" means to use your right hand forming the shape of the letter "p" from the signing alphabet while making this sign. "Using your right bent hand" means to use your right hand in a bent shape while making this sign. `top of page` ORIGIN OF THE AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet was a Philadelphia born theology student of French ancestry who became interested in helping deaf people of the United States. He went to France where a sign language was already established. After learning that language, he and a French colleague developed the American Sign Language patterned after the French version. For this reason ASL (American Sign Language) uses French syntax. In ASL the time element, if there is one, comes first followed by the topic, then the verb etc.. After learning ASL you can most likely communicate easily with deaf French people, with only one difficulty: when letters are used in a sign, the French people will use the first letter from the French word while English speaking people will use the first letter from the English word. As an example the ASL sign for "people" uses both hands shaped like the sign letter "p," whereas the French will use both hands shaped like the sign letter "g" in the same manner, because the French word for people is "gens." Now the good news: many words that don't require a letter in their signing; such as "good," "thank-you," "have," "know" etc.; are the same in French and American sign languages. You can speak French and didn't know it! `top of page`