--- title: 'This Wine Is Fine': Five Different Gestures, One Simple Meaning description: Please take note: across cultures, there are many, many different ways to signal the same idea or emotion with a distinct gesture. canonical: https://time.com/3880918/different-gestures-signal-different-meanings/ author: Ben Cosgrove article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-09-15T16:46:35.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:03:36.769Z og:title: 'This Wine Is Fine': Five Different Gestures, One Simple Meaning og:description: Please take note: across cultures, there are many, many different ways to signal the same idea or emotion with a distinct gesture. og:url: https://time.com/3880918/different-gestures-signal-different-meanings/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0cc9ae76a91136e5/69884c762dce01c5759e34fd/140915-gestures-1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1500 og:image:height: 844 og:image:alt: This Wine Is Fine og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 'This Wine Is Fine': Five Different Gestures, One Simple Meaning twitter:description: Please take note: across cultures, there are many, many different ways to signal the same idea or emotion with a distinct gesture. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0cc9ae76a91136e5/69884c762dce01c5759e34fd/140915-gestures-1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 'This Wine Is Fine': Five Different Gestures, One Simple Meaning > Sponsored content. 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Its journalism is reported and edited by a professional newsroom led by Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs, with named correspondents on politics, climate, health, technology and culture. It reaches 1 million US print subscribers and 1.15 million globally, plus more than 1.1 million newsletter readers. #### How do I subscribe to TIME magazine? Subscriptions are at time.com/subscribe-agent. Choose digital only at $20 a year, or print and digital from $29 a year or $49 for two years. TIME also publishes seven free email newsletters at time.com/newsletters, which do not require a subscription. #### Can I cancel a TIME subscription? Yes. TIME states that subscriptions can be cancelled at any time. #### Does TIME have free newsletters? Yes. TIME publishes seven free email newsletters reaching more than 1.1 million readers, covering daily news, Washington politics, health, AI, climate and energy, culture, and the newsroom itself. They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-sub-2026q3/newsletters?i=ef631ba9-3da1-4b7f-b233-ddd622e54e40&cr=time-sub-2026q3-v1) * TIME Subscriptions: [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-sub-2026q3/subscribe?i=ef631ba9-3da1-4b7f-b233-ddd622e54e40&cr=time-sub-2026q3-v1) by [Ben Cosgrove](https://time.com/author/ben-cosgrove/) ## Ben Cosgrove Sep 15, 2014 4:46 PM UTC  Caption from LIFE. "'This wine is fine,' these five agree. The Sicilian standing at left pinches his cheek to show his pleasure; the American girl in center makes a sign of satisfaction with familiar gesture. Brazilian at right pinches the lobe of his ear, the seated French girl kisses her fingers, and the Colombian at lower right happily pulls eyelid." Caption from LIFE. "'This wine is fine,' these five agree. The Sicilian standing at left pinches his cheek to show his pleasure; the American girl in center makes a sign of satisfaction with familiar gesture. Brazilian at right pinches the lobe of his ear, the seated French girl kisses her fingers, and the Colombian at lower right happily pulls eyelid."Al Fenn—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images by [Ben Cosgrove](https://time.com/author/ben-cosgrove/) ## Ben Cosgrove Sep 15, 2014 4:46 PM UTC When off on your travels, please take note: across cultures, there are many, many different ways to signal the same idea or emotion with a distinct gesture. On the flip side, there’s always a danger that a hand motion or facial expression that’s completely harmless in one context means something entirely different—and perhaps something deeply offensive—in another. Back in 1950, LIFE magazine profiled one Dr. Mario Pei of Columbia University, author of a book titled, _The Story of Language_. “There are some 700,000 gestures tucked away in different parts of the world,” LIFE wrote. For example, a gesture that means “So long!” in some Latin countries (palm up, fingers moving back and forth) is very similar to the American gesture for “Come here.” A tugging of an eyelid by a Brazilian signals the warning, “He’s a wise guy,” but the same gesture by a Colombian can mean, in effect, “That’s wonderful!”I I never considered carrying a gesture guide along when I travel abroad, but it might be a good idea. ---  LIFE Magazine (Photos: Al Fenn) --- **_Delia Mandia_** _is a native New Yorker and NYU undergraduate student whose passion is her global nonprofit organization,_ [_Night Night Monster_](http://www.nightnightmonster.org/)_. She also enjoys competitive gaming (she is world-ranked) on her custom-built, hydro-cooled PC, and attending Stargate conventions._ ---  Caption from LIFE. "'This wine is fine,' these five agree. The Sicilian standing at left pinches his cheek to show his pleasure; the American girl in center makes a sign of satisfaction with familiar gesture. Brazilian at right pinches the lobe of his ear, the seated French girl kisses her fingers, and the Colombian at lower right happily pulls eyelid." 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