How to Sign Opinion

The short answer

In American Sign Language (ASL), OPINION is usually shown as an O handshape made with your dominant hand and held near your forehead, with a small repeated movement. The forehead location ties the sign to thinking and ideas, and the O shape stands for the first letter of the English word. A sign that borrows a letter shape this way is called an initialized sign.

Which sign language you mean changes the answer. ASL is the main sign language in the United States and much of Canada. British Sign Language, Auslan and other national sign languages are separate languages with their own vocabulary, so the ASL sign described here may not be understood, or may mean something else, outside ASL.

How to form the sign step by step

• 1. Use your dominant hand, the one you write with.
• 2. Make an O handshape: curve all four fingers and touch their tips to the tip of your thumb, leaving a rounded opening like the letter O.
• 3. Bring the O up near your forehead, usually slightly in front of it or toward the side of your dominant hand. Keep your hand close to your head without pressing against it.
• 4. Make a small, repeated movement. Reference sources describe this movement in slightly different ways: some show a short back-and-forth motion toward and away from the forehead, and others show small circles.
• 5. Keep your facial expression natural and fitting to the sentence. In ASL, facial expression carries grammar and tone, so a neutral or thoughtful face suits a plain statement of opinion.

Variations and how the sign is used in conversation

Signs vary by region, community and generation, much as spoken words do. The exact movement of OPINION is one of the areas where descriptions differ, so treat the steps above as a common form rather than the only correct one.

ASL does not translate English phrases word for word. To express “in my opinion,” signers often combine MY with OPINION, or they simply use THINK, depending on context and personal style. Watching how fluent signers phrase this in real conversation is more reliable than converting an English sentence one sign at a time.

How to check that your sign is right

A written description cannot fully show movement, speed or exact hand position, so it is easy to drift from the intended form. These checks help:

• Compare with video: watch a reputable ASL video dictionary or a course taught by Deaf instructors, and match your handshape, location and movement to the clip.
• Record yourself: film yourself signing and play it back next to the reference. Look at whether the O is clearly rounded, whether it sits at forehead level, and whether the movement is small and controlled rather than large and sweeping.
• Ask a fluent signer: feedback from a Deaf signer or a qualified ASL teacher is the best confirmation that the sign is natural and understood, including whether your local community prefers a different form.

If you practise or sign on a video call, frame the camera so your forehead and raised hand are fully visible. Because OPINION is made near the head, a camera angled too low or framed too tightly can cut the sign off and make it hard to read.

Limitations of this guide

No verified source material was supplied for this article. The description above reflects how the ASL sign is commonly presented, but it has not been checked against a specific dictionary entry. Confirm the form with a video reference or a fluent signer before relying on it, especially in an important conversation or teaching setting.