gesture

B1 Topic:The Human Body

US /ˈd͡ʒɛs.t͡ʃɚ/ UK /ˈd͡ʒɛs.t͡ʃə/ See IPA manual

Freq #5685

Meanings

1

noun
A movement of the hands, head, or body to express something.

She made a gesture toward the door to show we should leave.
2

noun
An action that shows your feelings or intentions toward someone.

They sent flowers as a gesture of sympathy.
3

verb
To make a movement with your hands or body to express something.

He gestured for us to sit down.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

3 verb · to make a movement with... gesticulate motion

Word family

Forms gesturedgesturesgesturing

Derived forms countergesturegesticulate gesticulationgesticulativegesturablegesturalgesturelessgesturelikegesturementgesturergesturinglyintergesture

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

facial gesture
a movement of the face that communicates a feeling or message

Adjective + noun

Simplified etymology

Gesture entered English in the late Middle Ages and has the same root as jest, which came from Latin gesta, “actions” or “exploits.”

Etymology

From Medieval Latin gestūra (“a mode of action”), from Latin gerō (“to bear; (reflexive) bear oneself, behave, act”), past participle gestus.

*h₂eǵ- Proto-Indo-European gestūra la-med gerō Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

The Human Body Theater & Performance

External links

# gesture

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B1
**Part of speech:** noun, verb
**IPA (US):** /ˈd͡ʒɛs.t͡ʃɚ/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈd͡ʒɛs.t͡ʃə/
**Frequency rank:** 5685

## Meanings
1. A movement of the hands, head, or body to express something.
2. An action that shows your feelings or intentions toward someone.
3. To make a movement with your hands or body to express something.

## Examples
- She made a gesture toward the door to show we should leave.
- They sent flowers as a gesture of sympathy.
- He gestured for us to sit down.

## Derived Forms
- countergesture
- gesticulate
- gesticulation
- gesticulative
- gesturable
- gestural
- gestureless
- gesturelike
- gesturement
- gesturer
- gesturingly
- intergesture

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *h₂eǵ-
- Root: gestūra
- Root: gerō

## Etymology
From Medieval Latin gestūra (“a mode of action”), from Latin gerō (“to bear; (reflexive) bear oneself, behave, act”), past participle gestus.

## AI Etymology
Gesture comes from Medieval Latin gestūra (“a mode of action”), from Latin gerō (“to bear; (reflexive) bear oneself, behave, act”), past participle gestus. In current use, the main senses are “A movement of the hands, head, or body to express something” and “An action that shows your feelings or intentions toward someone”.

## Topics
- The Human Body
- Theater & Performance

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