Signing: A Signature, a New Player, and a Language
Signing is writing your name, recruiting someone, or communicating in sign language. The three senses have little in common but the word.
Signing covers three unrelated activities: putting your name to a document, recruiting a player or artist, and communicating in a sign language. The third is worth stating plainly: sign languages are full natural languages with their own grammar, not signed versions of English, and British and American sign languages are mutually unintelligible.
- Writing a signature. *The signing of the treaty.*
- A newly recruited player. *The club's summer signings.*
- Using sign language. *The event had signing throughout.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | signing | A record signing. |
| Plural | signings | Two new signings. |
| Verb | sign | Sign here. |
| Noun | signature | An illegible signature. |
| Related | signatory | A signatory state. |
How it is used in a sentence
- The signing took place in Geneva.Formal ceremony.
- He was the club's most expensive signing.Sport.
- The performance was interpreted in BSL.British Sign Language.
Sign languages
- BSL — British Sign Language, with its own grammar
- ASL — American Sign Language, related to French rather than British signing
- Auslan — Australian Sign Language, related to BSL
- ISL — Irish Sign Language
- International Sign — a contact system used at international events
From *sign*, from Latin *signum*, a mark or token. The recruitment sense comes from signing a contract; the linguistic sense from signs made with the hands.
Is sign language universal?
No. There are hundreds of distinct sign languages. British and American signing are not mutually intelligible.
Is sign language signed English?
No. BSL and ASL have their own grammar and word order, quite different from spoken English.