Ziggy.

How to sign

Eat in ASL

Eat brings a flattened O handshape to the mouth, as if putting food in. It's the base of breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

How to sign eat

  1. 1

    Bring the fingertips and thumb together in a flattened O.

  2. 2

    Tap the fingertips toward your lips once or twice.

  3. 3

    Repeat the motion to mean 'eating' or 'food.'

Common mistakes

  • Touching the lips with a flat hand. The fingers come together at the tips.

Use it in a sentence

English sentences you can sign with Eat. In ASL the word order can shift and filler words drop away.

  • “I want to eat.”

Keep going

More body actions signs

All 8 signs

Questions about “Eat”

Yes. This clip shows the common ASL sign for eat. Like spoken languages, ASL has regional variation, so you may see small differences from signer to signer.