Thank You in Sign Language: ASL, BSL, and Auslan Compared

Anyone who has ever tried to wave a quick “thanks” across a noisy room already knows how much a single gesture can carry. But “thank you” in sign language is not one universal motion — American Sign Language, British Sign Language, and Australian Sign Language shape it with different handshapes, starting points, and directions, and this dictionary-backed comparison details the movements that separate a real “thank you” from a near-lookalike.

ASL start point: chin, open-B hand ·
BSL start point: fingertips on the chin ·
BSL movement: down and away, one smooth motion ·
ASL direction: toward the person being thanked

Six facts, one pattern: the chin is the shared launch point, but each language family sends the hand in a different direction.

How do you sign thank you in American Sign Language?

ASL’s “thank you” is a one-handed sign. The non-dominant hand stays out of the way; the dominant hand does all the work.

1. Make a flat open-B hand: fingers together, thumb out.
2. Bring the fingertips to your chin, palm facing you.
3. Move the hand forward and slightly down, away from the chin.
4. Aim the sign at the person you’re thanking.

That sequence matches the form documented by Northern Virginia Community College (open linguistics textbook): an open-B handshape, palm toward the signer, starting at the chin, then moving outward into neutral signing space through elbow extension. Text descriptions capture the position and the path, but not the rhythm — the sign should feel like a small courtesy, quick enough to be natural and deliberate enough to be seen.

Correct handshape for thank you in ASL

• Handshape: flat open-B — fingers together, thumb out.
• Palm: facing you at the start; the person watching sees the back of your hand.
• Location: chin or just below the lips.

Palm orientation is part of the meaning. The hand stays relaxed and open, and the energy travels from the chin outward — a cramped fist or a strumming hand changes the sign entirely.

Movement and direction of the ASL thank you sign

Let the elbow extend naturally and keep the motion smooth — the hand travels forward and slightly downward into neutral signing space, not in a sharp flick. If you’re left-handed, mirror the whole pattern; ASL is produced with the dominant hand.

How do you sign thank you in British Sign Language?

BSL’s “thank you” looks like a cousin of the ASL sign at first glance — same chin territory — but the hand departs in a different direction.

Handshape and starting position for BSL thank you

• Handshape: flat hand, fingers together and relaxed.
• Starting position: fingertips on the chin.
• Palm orientation: toward the signer at the start.

According to Lead Academy (UK training provider), the palm faces the signer at the start — an observer sees the back of the hand first — and the movement is a smooth forward-and-down motion rather than a sharp flick. That palm direction is worth pausing on: a learner copying a mirrored video will often start palm-out, which flips the entire sign. Match the hand you see, not the one that looks like yours in a mirror.

Direction of the BSL thank you gesture

The hand travels down and away from the signer. In adult-like BSL, the whole motion reads as one calm stroke; the British Sign Language Dictionary’s entry (cited in the table above) places the fingertips on the chin and moves the hand down and away.

The pattern: ASL launches forward from the chin; BSL drops down from it. Same starting point, different geometry — a good reminder that sign languages don’t translate sign-for-sign.

What is the difference between good and thank you in ASL?

Beginner ASL learners mix up “good” and “thank you” because both signs start near the chin and move outward. The difference is one small contact.

Handshape difference between good and thank you in ASL

• Good: open flat hand at chin level, no contact with the chin.
• Thank you: the same open hand, but the fingertips touch the chin first.
• Both use a B-handshape with fingers together and the thumb out.

The quick-facts table above, from Northern Virginia Community College’s linguistics textbook, records the key detail for “thank you”: a B-handshape with fingertips touching the chin. “Good” keeps the same handshape but skips the touch.

Movement difference between good and thank you in ASL

• Thank you: fingertips to chin, then hand moves forward and slightly down.
• Good: hand starts at chin level and moves outward without contacting the chin.
• In practice: touch-and-release means thank you; glide-past means good.

The practical test is the tap, not the height. If the hand is flush against the chin and then pulls away, you’re signing “thank you.” If it slides past without touching, you’re signing “good.” Over-correction is just as common: learners who learn the difference sometimes start “good” with a tiny chin tap anyway, because the two signs feel identical under the fingers — which is exactly why video feedback matters.

Common confusion in beginners

The trade-off: “good” and “thank you” being neighbors in space is what makes beginners misread them — but it’s also what makes the fix easy. Learn the contact, and the confusion disappears.

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

“Thank you” rarely travels alone. In ASL beginner lessons, it’s usually taught with three companions that share its polite, chest-and-face neighborhood.

• You’re welcome: a flat B-hand moves from the chin outward — close to “thank you,” with a slight nod.
• Please: a flat hand circles over the chest.
• Sorry: a relaxed fist (A-handshape) circles over the chest.

Notice the pattern: all three live near the chest and face, and none of them rely on the wrist flick that English speakers fall back on. BSL has its own quirk: instructional sources report that “please” and “thank you” share a closely related hand movement, with mouthing and context distinguishing the two (Lakes Current (sign language explainer)).

The trade-off: a small politeness set is easy to memorize but easy to mangle. Please, sorry, and thank-you live in the same movement neighborhood, so contact and palm orientation decide which one you actually signed.

How to learn the sign, step by step

1. Pick your language before you pick your sign. ASL, BSL, and Auslan are separate languages, and a sign from one does not automatically transfer to another (Lead Academy (UK training provider)).
2. Break any sign into the basics: where it starts, what shape the hand is in, which way the palm faces, and where it travels.
3. Rehearse the ASL form: flat open-B hand, fingertips to the chin, then out toward the person.
4. Rehearse the BSL form: flat hand, palm toward you, fingertips at the chin, then down and away in one relaxed motion.
5. For Auslan, treat written descriptions as a starting point — check the exact form against a current Auslan dictionary or a fluent Deaf signer (Auslan Online Level 1 Handbook (Australian Deaf community teaching resource)).
6. Film yourself on a phone and compare against a video dictionary; still images hide timing and orientation changes.
7. Practice the trio — please, sorry, you’re welcome — in the same session so the location differences stick.

Mastering these steps requires attention to the language family first and the handshape second, but the payoff is a sign that is understood immediately.

What’s confirmed, what’s not

The balance is honest: the core handshapes and starting locations are well documented, but the margins — regional Auslan variation and one-handed variants — are still fuzzy. That’s normal for a visual language captured in text.

What the sources say

A still image cannot fully convey the path, timing, orientation changes, or fluidity of a sign.

— Lead Academy (UK training provider)

Fingertips on the chin; the hand moves down and away from the signer.

— British Sign Language Dictionary (UK sign language reference)

The implication: both warnings point in the same direction — signs are movement, not pictures. Learn them from video and from people, not from a single frozen frame.

Sign language “thank you” is a small sign with a steep learning curve for the details that matter: which hand, which chin contact, which direction. For learners in the US, the distinction is practical — touch the chin for “thank you”, skip the touch for “good”, or you will hear that you complimented the meal instead of appreciating it. For learners in the UK and Australia, the same rule applies with your local dictionary: one smooth motion from the chin, checked against a video, beats any amount of guessing.

Frequently asked questions

These responses clarify common points of confusion for learners navigating the differences between sign languages.