signLingo
0Day streak
120Gems
5Hearts

Reference

british sign language

BSL was recognised as a language of Great Britain in its own right in 2003, and by Act of Parliament in 2022.

Alphabet6

  • ABoth hands

    Hold your non-dominant hand up flat with the fingers spread, then touch its thumb with your other index finger.

    The five vowels run thumb to pinky in order: A, E, I, O, U.

  • EBoth hands

    Hold your non-dominant hand up flat with the fingers spread, then touch its index finger with your other index finger.

    E is finger number 2, counting from the thumb.

  • IBoth hands

    Hold your non-dominant hand up flat with the fingers spread, then touch its middle finger with your other index finger.

    I is finger number 3, counting from the thumb.

  • OBoth hands

    Hold your non-dominant hand up flat with the fingers spread, then touch its ring finger with your other index finger.

    O is finger number 4, counting from the thumb.

  • UBoth hands

    Hold your non-dominant hand up flat with the fingers spread, then touch its pinky with your other index finger.

    U is finger number 5, counting from the thumb.

  • C

    One hand only: curve your fingers and thumb into the shape of a C.

    C is one of the few BSL letters that needs a single hand.

Numbers5

  • 1

    Index finger straight up.

  • 2

    Index and middle fingers up.

  • 3

    Index, middle and ring fingers up.

  • 4

    All four fingers up, thumb tucked in.

  • 5

    Open hand — all five fingers spread.

what this chart doesn’t cover

Fingerspelling is a small corner of BSL. Real signing carries grammar in movement, facial expression and the space in front of you — none of which a still handshape can hold. Treat this as a doorway, and learn the rest from Deaf teachers.

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