To sign 'below,' start by holding your non-dominant hand flat in front of your chest with the palm facing down. Form a flat shape with your dominant hand, also with the palm facing down, and place it underneath your non-dominant hand. Finally, move your dominant hand straight downward to represent something being lower or below.
Sign 'temperature,' then use the sign for 'below' to indicate the level dropping, followed by 'freezing'. Emphasize the downward motion of your dominant hand to clearly show the drop in temperature.
Point to yourself, sign 'apartment,' then use the 'below' sign moving downward before pointing to the person you are talking to. This clearly establishes the spatial relationship between the two locations.
Sign 'table,' then use the 'below' sign to indicate the spatial relationship, followed by 'look'. Make sure your non-dominant hand stays flat and stationary to represent the surface of the table.
Sign 'temperature,' then use the sign for 'below' to indicate the level dropping, followed by 'freezing'. Emphasize the downward motion of your dominant hand to clearly show the drop in temperature.
Point to yourself, sign 'apartment,' then use the 'below' sign moving downward before pointing to the person you are talking to. This clearly establishes the spatial relationship between the two locations.
Sign 'table,' then use the 'below' sign to indicate the spatial relationship, followed by 'look'. Make sure your non-dominant hand stays flat and stationary to represent the surface of the table.
They are very similar and often rely on the same spatial concept, but they can be signed differently. 'Under' is frequently signed with the dominant hand in an 'A' handshape (thumb pointing up) sliding underneath the flat non-dominant hand. 'Below,' as shown here, uses two flat hands with a distinct downward motion.
Absolutely! In ASL, you can modify the movement to show exactly how far below something is. Moving your dominant hand just a little bit indicates 'slightly below,' while a large, exaggerated downward movement means 'far below.' This is a great way to add descriptive detail.
Your non-dominant hand should always be the stationary hand on top. It acts as the fixed reference point. Your dominant hand (the hand you write with) goes below it and performs the active downward movement. Keeping this consistent helps maintain clear grammar in ASL.
