How to sign
How in ASL
How puts two bent hands together at the knuckles and rolls them open until the palms face up, with lowered eyebrows.
- Single sign
- Two hands
- Handshape: Bent hands (claw-like, fingers together)
- In front of chest
- Question Words
How to sign how
- 1
Bend both hands and place them together, knuckles touching, thumbs up.
- 2
Roll them forward and open until both palms face up.
- 3
Eyebrows down. For 'how are you,' follow it with a point to YOU.
Common mistakes
- Starting palms-up. The sign begins with the knuckles together and ends palms-up; the rotation is the sign.
Questions about “How”
Yes. This clip shows the common ASL sign for how. Like spoken languages, ASL has regional variation, so you may see small differences from signer to signer.
Guide
Question Words
The six WH-question signs, where they go in an ASL sentence, and the eyebrow rule that makes a question a question. Video for each sign and full question phrases.
From the blog
The First 50 ASL Signs to Learn (and Why These 50)
A teacher-picked starter vocabulary: greetings, replies, pronouns, question words, and feelings that let you hold a real first conversation. Every sign on video.