Thank You in Sign Language: ASL, Baby, Indonesian, Japanese

Number of ASL users in the United States: 250,000 to 500,000 ·
Percentage of deaf children with deaf parents: under 10% ·
Typical age for babies to start signing: 8 to 12 months ·
Number of recognized sign languages worldwide: over 300

Seven rows, one pattern: the sign itself is simple, but its meaning lives in small details — handshape, palm direction, and starting point — while the evidence on teaching it to babies is far more mixed than most parenting blogs suggest.

How do you sign ‘thank you’ in ASL?

In American Sign Language, “thank you” is one of the first signs people learn, and it is quicker than most newcomers expect. The version taught in ASL dictionaries looks like this: a flat hand with fingers together starts near the chin, palm facing you, and moves forward and slightly down — toward the person you are thanking (Ziggy ASL).

What is the standard ASL handshape for ‘thank you’?

• Flat hand with all fingers together
• Palm facing the signer at the start
• Fingers relaxed but closed, not stiff

The opposite of a loose wave is a controlled, deliberate motion. Keeping the fingers together distinguishes “thank you” from signs that use an open palm or spread hand, which is why dictionaries emphasize the shape, not just the movement.

How far should you move your hand from the chin?

• Forward and slightly downward, away from the chin
• The hand stays in front of you — it does not sweep across the body
• Speed varies by situation: a quick motion reads as casual thanks, a slower one as sincere gratitude

There is no fixed measurement, and you do not need one. The sign’s meaning comes from its contrast: it leaves the face and travels toward the other person, and that direction is part of the meaning.

The pattern: every part of the sign — handshape, palm, direction, and speed — carries meaning. Change one detail and you are signing something closer to a wave.

How do you teach ‘thank you’ in baby sign language?

Baby signing adds signs from ASL or another sign language to spoken interaction with hearing babies, and ASHA’s guidance for parents is concrete: pair the spoken word with the manual sign, use eye contact or shared attention, and repeat the sign in a meaningful context (ASHA). It is not a separate “baby language” — it is a bridge that lets a toddler show you what they need before speech catches up.

At what age can babies learn the ‘thank you’ sign?

• Around 8 to 12 months is the window most guides recommend
• THANK-YOU is not an early sign — it typically comes after concrete vocabulary like FOOD and DRINK
• Every baby varies; motor control matters more than a calendar date

The developmental pattern matters more than the exact month. A baby who can wave and point is ready to try signing; expecting polite vocabulary before functional words is where most parents get frustrated. And when signing fades after 15 months, that is usually not a failure — it is often a sign that spoken words are taking over the same communicative job.

What are tips for teaching the sign to toddlers?

• Model the sign during ordinary routines — feeding, dressing, reading, bathing, diapering
• Say “thank you” every time you make the sign
• Keep your face in view so the baby sees both the word and the hand
• Accept approximations; refine with gentle repetition

The evidence on outcomes is more measured. A Stanford-hosted review of infant gesture programs flags methodological weaknesses — small samples, weak comparison groups, inconsistent outcome measures — and summarizes a randomized trial of 40 infants ages 8 to 20 months in which gesture exposure produced no language-outcome difference from controls. The same review found that mothers who received gesture training became more responsive to their babies’ nonverbal cues (Stanford Medicine).

Longer-term claims come from Acredolo and Goodwyn’s work on 103 infants divided into sign-focused, speech-focused, and control groups and followed for eight years; the research reportedly found cognitive advantages at age 8 among children whose parents had signed (Lawrence Journal-World / Philadelphia Inquirer). For a companion look at the ASL and baby-sign angles, see Thank You in Sign Language: ASL, Baby Sign & Global Variations.

The trade-off: the tool works; the promise of accelerated speech doesn’t.

The connection is the outcome; the vocabulary claims are not.

How do you sign ‘please’ and ‘you’re welcome’ in sign language?

Politeness signs travel in a set. “Please” lives on the chest, “thank you” starts at the chin, and “you’re welcome” often circles back to the same motion you just used.

What is the ASL sign for ‘please’?

• Flat hand with the palm facing the chest
• Small circular motion over the chest (Lifeprint (ASL lessons))
• Fingers stay together — same discipline as “thank you”

If you know “thank you,” “please” is a useful contrast: same flat hand, opposite location. One comes from the mouth; the other stays on the chest — a small geography lesson in how ASL keeps signs distinct.

What is the ASL sign for ‘you’re welcome’?

• Often exactly the same motion as “thank you” — flat hand from the chin, forward and down
• Sometimes a modified version with an open hand moving from the chest outward
• Context and conversational flow decide which form you will see (HandSpeak)

This is why beginners get confused: in ASL, “thank you” and “you’re welcome” can be near-mirrors. The flow of the conversation, rather than a strict rule, tells you which meaning is in play.

The implication: learn all three signs as one unit and you will be ready for the whole exchange — the ask, the thanks, and the reply.

How do you sign ‘thank you’ in Indonesian and Japanese sign languages?

ASL is not a universal code. Each country has its own sign language with independent grammar and vocabulary, and the same gesture can mean different things in different places (Lifeprint (ASL lessons)).

What is the sign for ‘thank you’ in Indonesian Sign Language (BISINDO)?

• BISINDO’s history includes multiple influences, and regional varieties exist across Indonesia
• In some regions, the “thank you” gesture looks similar to the ASL version; in others, it takes a distinct local form
• Whether the gesture mirrors ASL or diverges is not settled

That uncertainty is worth sitting with, because it is the opposite of what most “sign language for beginners” articles imply. There is no single Indonesian sign; there is a language with local varieties, and a traveler should learn the form used in the city they are visiting.

What is the sign for ‘thank you’ in Japanese Sign Language (JSL)?

• Open hand moving downward from the mouth
• A motion that resembles the shape used for “excuse me” in JSL
• Often accompanied by a slight bow, matching spoken Japanese etiquette

In JSL, the hand travels down from the mouth rather than out from the chin. The bow is not decoration — it is part of the utterance. Different motion, different etiquette, same intention.

What this means: if you have learned ASL and you are traveling to Jakarta or Tokyo, the intention travels, but the sign does not. Local signers use local signs. If you are comparing systems, Thank You in Sign Language: ASL, BSL, and Auslan Compared walks through how the same word changes across three countries.

The pattern: gratitude is a local gesture, and learning the local form is the respectful shortcut.

Are there video and GIF resources for the ‘thank you’ sign?

The fastest way to learn a quick, subtle motion is to watch it performed. ASL video dictionaries and short clips fix the handshape and movement faster than any description.

Where can I find reliable videos of the ‘thank you’ sign?

• Lifeprint — free ASL lessons with sign demonstrations
• HandSpeak — an ASL dictionary with video entries
• YouTube — searching “ASL thank you” surfaces instructor-led examples (YouTube video search)

The same advice applies to baby signing: watch the motion, then mirror it with the baby. A 30-second clip is worth more than a paragraph of description. A quick note on quality: some apps and social videos are produced without Deaf input and get the handshape or palm orientation wrong, so prefer dictionaries and channels that treat ASL as a distinct language.

Are there GIFs or emoji versions of the sign?

• GIF databases like GIPHY host looping clips of the sign — search “thank you ASL”
• No dedicated emoji for the sign exists; people improvise with folded-hand or open-hand emoji

GIFs are great for a quick memory check; they are not a substitute for a dictionary entry, because context and motion quality matter. Use them as reminders, not teachers.

The trade-off: videos teach you the motion; only real use teaches you the timing. Watch a demo, then use the sign in an actual exchange within the hour.

How to teach the thank-you sign: a step-by-step routine

This routine follows the ASHA guidance above: meaningful context, spoken word plus manual sign, and repetition. Keep each session short, low-pressure, and attached to something the baby actually wants.

1. Choose a daily anchor moment. Snack time, diaper changes, and greetings all work because they happen every day.
2. Get the child’s attention. You want the baby to see your face, hear the words, and watch your hand in the same moment.
3. Say “thank you” as you sign it. Pair the spoken word with the motion every time, so the sign is never an isolated trick.
4. Move the sign toward the child. The ASL motion travels from your chin toward the person — that direction is part of the meaning.
5. Accept the approximation. A baby’s first attempt may look like a wave or an open hand. That is progress; gentle repetition refines it.
6. Repeat for weeks, not days. Consistent repetition for months is normal before a baby produces a sign independently (Lawrence Journal-World / Philadelphia Inquirer).

The trade-off: routine makes the sign stick, but drilling it as a trick undoes the point. The sign is communication, not a performance.

Where the evidence stands

Put the snapshot and the research side by side and a clear split appears: the sign itself is well documented, while claims about what baby signing achieves are not.

The split is the story: the sign is knowable and teachable; the marketing around baby signing is softer than the research. Both facts are useful.

What experts say about the ‘thank you’ sign

“People sometimes assume sign language is gesture plus mime. In reality, each sign language is a full language, and gratitude is expressed differently in each one — there is no single universal ‘thank you’ sign.”

— Dr. Carol Padden, linguist and sign language researcher, UC San Diego (UC San Diego)

“The motion is small: a flat hand starts at the chin, palm facing you, and moves forward and slightly down, as if offering the thanks to the person in front of you.”

— American Sign Language instructor, Lifeprint.com

The gap between what the sign is and what the marketing claims about it is the real story. The ASL “thank you” sign itself is simple, quick to learn, and impossible to confuse once you have seen it; the claims around baby signing as a speech accelerator are far less solid than the connection it creates. For American parents weighing baby sign language, the choice is clear: teach “thank you” as a bridge to communication and attention, or you will miss the one benefit the evidence actually supports.

Frequently asked questions