Life

The Meaning of Hand Gestures in Other Countries

by Sara Levine

You've got your usual travel checklist: passport, cell phone, toothbrush, clean underwear, check. But now you might want to add "correct hand gesture knowledge" to that list, because Buzzfeed made a video on what different hand gestures mean in different countries, and you probably haven't thought of this stuff before. So you should probably take a look, because I'm sure "accidentally flipping someone off and making for an awkward moment" isn't on your itinerary.

Probably my favorite one of all of them (and the one with the most awkward potential) is that our "Rock n Roll" sign in the U.S. means "Your spouse is cheating on you" in Brazil (and a bunch of other countries I can't identify by their flags). As one brilliant commenter pointed out, how exactly do you use this in practice? Like if you found out somehow that your friend's partner is cheating on them, but you don't feel comfortable saying it aloud, do you just invite them over for dinner and say, "So, uh, this is going to be painful, and I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I just couldn't live with myself if I didn't tell you. How do I put this....*rock and roll hand sign*"?

Here are some other hand signs that get a little lost in translation

1. Thumbs Up

Oh boy. Those two meanings could not be more opposite.

2. Peace

That would be quite a way to make an exit. "Deuces, I'm out. Go screw yourself."

3. A-Ok

This makes sense: if you have money, everything is OK! Just kidding, we all know money isn't everything.

Watch the full video below.

Images: Buzzfeed / Youtube