How to Sign “Number 4” in ASL

To sign 4 in ASL, hold up your four fingers, spread apart, and fold the thumb into the palm. Raise your dominant hand beside your shoulder, at about chin height. In this video the palm faces forward, toward the person you are signing to. Hold the hand still for a moment: 4 has no movement.

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How to sign it

  1. Handshape: all four fingers up and spread, the thumb folded into the palm.

  2. Location: beside your shoulder, at about chin height, on the side of your dominant hand.

  3. Palm orientation: the palm faces forward.

  4. Movement: none. Hold the handshape still for a moment.

Tip to remember it

Lifeprint notes that 1 to 5 are signed palm forward in a series of numbers, such as a phone number, a time of day, an age or a number with two or more digits.

Use it in a sentence

LION 4.

Four lions.

This video signs 4 with the palm facing forward. Lifeprint notes that on its own, for example when answering how many, 4 is often signed with the palm facing back toward the signer, and that Deaf signers use both versions.

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Signed by a Deaf, fluent ASL signer.

Description checked against AISA's own video (the reference); Lifeprint (ASL University), lifeprint.com/asl101/pages-signs/n/numbers1-10.htm.

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Animated GIF: a Deaf signer signs 4 in ASL, four spread fingers held up with the thumb folded in, palm forward.

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