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TO: The American Sign Language (ASL) sign for "to"
There are many ways to sign "to." Often the best way to sign "to" is to not sign it at all. That is because often the concept of "to" is already included in some other sign or set of signs and if you added a separate sign for "to" you would be wasting your time and that of your conversation partner.
The general sign for "to" is done by holding your non-dominant (nd) hand's index finger pointing up (palm-side toward your dominant side) and then point your dominant hand (dh) index finger at the nd-hand and move it toward the tip of the nd-hand index finger. It doesn't matter if you actually touch the finger or not (most of the time during high speed signing of the sign "to" we don't touch the nd-index finger -- we just move toward it and come close).
General sign for "TO" at YouTube: https://youtu.be/-OLaWPj13UE
Phrases that involve "to" but don't need a separate sign for "to":
GO: "go to" I'm going to a party... https://youtu.be/jzKO7lOONxk
WANT: "want to" example: Do you want to go to the movies? https://youtu.be/R8pJg8rW3AE
NICE: "nice to" Example: It is nice to meet you. https://youtu.be/F7Wjb_AIvMA
BRING: bring to https://youtu.be/xWBBZxs69JY
ENTER: go in to / into https://youtu.be/4Vr7PfO6LHI
TEND: "tend to" Do you tend to compare prices? https://youtu.be/-OKF2r_8rOo
I FUTURE: I'm going to https://youtu.be/RMUZFdu6VtI
USE, make use of: "use to" Example: STUDY ASL, YOUR METHOD WHAT? (What method do you use to study ASL?) https://youtu.be/HM1RzVnr6Ak
USE, used to do in the past: https://youtu.be/E6Qd4bc9l9A
LIKE: "like to" Do you like to chat with Deaf? https://youtu.be/YLFFW5DdpkA
UP-TO-NOW https://youtu.be/ozKTqiWO6Kc also https://youtu.be/wwvLdszzH5w
GO-to-BED: "go to bed" https://youtu.be/86UjqJCApqo
PAST "used to" https://youtu.be/E6Qd4bc9l9A
MOVE: "move to" https://youtu.be/OxKJDUAYsjg
NEED: "need to" https://youtu.be/7py1g9DyMcI
Have to: See NEED https://youtu.be/7py1g9DyMcI
BEFORE-(prior-to) "prior to" https://youtu.be/lqow5S8tnMs
NOTHING-to-it: "nothing to it" https://youtu.be/daxA24i5ncM
ASK-to: asked to https://youtu.be/uQ6sPMWewzw "he asked me to..."
ADD-to / EXTRA: in addition to https://youtu.be/O8JHgnzhVvI
YOUR: belongs to you https://youtu.be/J5cjDBY1QU0
CONNECT: connect to / connected to https://youtu.be/Rb60Ad_K-as
AGAINST: opposed to https://youtu.be/Oi6KM2rmbq4
CAN: able to / available to (IX-[they] CAN JOIN) She is able to participate. https://youtu.be/4KfYv6em_c0
MAXIMUM (version) "up to a maximum of" https://youtu.be/Z9GwJUmZijE
MATCH: "match to" https://youtu.be/vN9YMc4XGOw
ACCUSTOMED-to: https://youtu.be/OlmnBxMJPh0 (version of HABIT)
Jump to conclusion: https://youtu.be/AkZADw-PeQU
Notes:
<< In a message dated 5/10/2012 6:34:36 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time, Paul Dunn writes:
Dear Dr. Bill,
Just wondering about the sign for "need to." I see the sign for must/have-to, ought-to/should, and need....but what about specifically "need to."
For example, "i need to do my homework" and "i need money" use "need" in slightly different ways. I supposed the homework sentence is the same as saying "i must do my homework."
Either way, I have Deaf friends that all sign "need to" by using the sign for "need" and then fingerspelling "to." They themselves are not sure if they are using ESL or ASL when doing this.
Thanks!!
- Paul
>>
Dear Paul,
In ASL the sign "NEED" automatically includes the concept of "to." Thus you and your friends do not need to fingerspell nor sign "to" when signing the concept of "need to." Adding the sign "TO" or fingerspelling the word "to" when signing "need to" doesn't make the concept any more clear in ASL but it does waste your time and that of your friends.
If you are taking an English class or for some other reason need to specifically show the concept of "to" on your hands so you can map it to the English word "to" then signing or spelling "to" would be worth the effort -- otherwise it is just wasted effort.
- Dr. Bill
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