How to Sign Meet and Met in ASL

In American Sign Language (ASL), MEET is signed by holding up both index fingers with your palms facing each other and bringing your hands together until they touch. The movement looks like two people walking up to each other. ASL has no separate sign for “met.” You sign MEET and show that it happened in the past through context or a time sign such as YESTERDAY, PAST or FINISH.

This guide covers ASL as commonly used in the United States. Other sign languages, such as British Sign Language or Auslan, have their own vocabulary and grammar, so do not assume these descriptions carry over. No source material was supplied for this article. The descriptions below reflect commonly documented ASL forms, and they can vary by region and community.

How to Sign MEET

Every ASL sign can be described by four parts: handshape (the shape your hand makes), palm orientation (which way your palm faces), location (where the sign happens relative to your body) and movement. If you check each part, you can confirm that your sign matches the standard form.

• 1. Make the “1” handshape with both hands: index finger extended straight up, other fingers curled into the palm, and thumb resting over them.
• 2. Hold both hands in front of your chest, a short distance apart.
• 3. Turn your palms to face each other, with both index fingers still pointing up.
• 4. Bring your hands toward each other in one smooth movement until the palm sides touch.
• 5. Stop when they make contact. Do not bounce or repeat the movement, because the verb is signed once.

Check your sign: practice in front of a mirror and confirm that both index fingers point upward rather than toward each other, that your palms face each other, that the hands travel together in one motion, and that the sign ends with your hands touching. If your fingers end up crossed or pointing forward, start again with your palms facing more directly.

Fluent signers sometimes change where each hand starts, or keep one hand still while the other moves toward it, to show who approached whom. This spatial use is a normal part of ASL grammar, but it is best learned by watching fluent signers rather than from a written description.

How to Sign “Met” (Past Tense)

English shows the past tense by changing the verb (meet becomes met). ASL usually keeps the verb the same and sets the time frame separately. Time signs usually come at the start of a sentence, and they apply to everything that follows until the time frame changes.

English | ASL approach

I met her yesterday. | Sign YESTERDAY first, then ME MEET HER.

I met him a long time ago. | Open with a past time sign such as PAST or LONG-AGO, then sign MEET.

I already met them. | Add FINISH to show the action is complete, for example ME FINISH MEET THEM.

We met at the event (time is already clear from the conversation). | Sign MEET with no extra marker; context carries the past tense.

The capitalized words above are glosses, a common written convention in which each English word in capitals stands for one ASL sign. Glosses do not follow English word order or grammar, so they are labels for signs, not word-for-word translations.

• PAST: hold a flat hand near your shoulder, palm facing back, and move it back over your shoulder.
• FINISH: hold both hands open with palms facing you, then twist them outward so the palms turn away.
• YESTERDAY: place the thumb of a Y handshape (thumb and little finger extended) on your cheek near your mouth, then move it back toward your ear.

Related Phrases

Nice to meet you: sign NICE, then MEET, then point to the other person for YOU. For NICE, slide your dominant hand, held flat, across the flat upturned palm of your other hand. This is one of the most common introductory phrases in ASL classes.

A meeting (noun), meaning a gathering of people, uses a different sign from the verb MEET. Hold both hands open with fingers spread and pointing up and palms facing each other. Then close the fingertips together into a flattened “O” shape, often repeating the motion. Use the index-finger sign when someone meets someone, and the closing-fingertips sign when you mean an organized meeting.

Facial Expression and Questions

In ASL, facial expression is part of the grammar. To ask a yes-or-no question such as “Did you meet her?”, raise your eyebrows while signing. For questions using who, where or when, such as “Where did you meet?”, the eyebrows are typically lowered or drawn together. Signing MEET correctly with a neutral face can still be misread if you mean to ask a question.

Limitations and Next Steps

A written description cannot show speed, rhythm or the small variations between regions and communities. To confirm your signs, compare them against a video ASL dictionary or ask a Deaf instructor or fluent signer to watch you. If you will be signing on a video call, keep your hands within the camera frame at chest height. Viewers need to see the full movement and the moment your hands make contact.