Italian Gestures: Meanings and How to Use Them

In Italy, hands do not move at random. Each gesture has a precise meaning, often inherited from centuries of non-verbal communication. Understanding these codes radically changes the way you interact with Italian speakers, whether travelling, in a meeting or in everyday conversation.

Why Italians talk with their hands

Italian gesturing is not a stereotype. It has a real and documented history. Its roots go back to ancient Rome, where the art of oratory attached great importance to the body, the hands and facial expression. Cicero himself described hand movements as an integral part of persuasive speech. Over the centuries, the Italian peninsula was shaped by very different cultures — Greek in Sicily and the South, Arab in Sicily again, Spanish in Naples, Byzantine in Latium. Each left traces in ways of communicating. The result is a dense gestural system that varies from North to South, with Naples as the unofficial capital of Italian gesturing. As early as 1832, researcher Andrea De Jorio published an entire work on Neapolitan gesturing, comparing it to depictions on ancient Greek vases. This is no coincidence: some current gestures find direct parallels in Greek antiquity.

Gestures of questioning and incomprehension

Gesture	Description	Meaning	Associated expression
🤌 Ma che vuoi?	Five fingers gathered into a bunch, hand shaken up and down or towards the other person	What do you want? / What are you talking about? / Are you joking?	Ma che vuoi? / Ma che dici?
Hand cupped behind the ear	Hand cupped behind the ear, slightly tilted towards the other person	I didn’t hear / Repeat that / What did you say?	Come? / Non ho capito.
Open palms facing upward	Both hands open, palms towards the sky, shrug of the shoulders	I don’t know / It’s incomprehensible / Mystery	Non lo so. / Boh!
Index finger under the chin	Index finger brushes the underside of the chin forward and flicks outward	I don’t care / It makes no difference to me	Me ne frego. / Non me ne importa.
Index finger rotating against the temple	Index finger rotates slowly against the temple	He’s crazy / He’s not right in the head	Sei matto! / Che pazzo!

The ma che vuoi gesture (often called the “artichoke hand” or mano a borsa) became an official emoji in 2020 at the request of Adriano Farano, who submitted it to the Unicode Consortium as a representation of Italian communication. It is now one of the most widely used emojis on Italian social media.

Gestures of approval and satisfaction

Gesture	Description	Meaning	Associated expression
Perfetto	Thumb and index forming a circle, other three fingers spread, hand gently rocking in front of the chest with a smile	Perfect / Excellent / That’s exactly it	Perfetto! / Benissimo!
Bacio delle dita	Fingers gathered into a bunch, brought to the lips, then spread outward like a projected kiss	It’s delicious / It’s magnificent / Bravo	Che buono! / Che bello! / Bravissimo!
Hand on the heart	Palm flat on the sternum	Sincerely / I assure you / With all my heart	Te lo giuro. / Sul serio.
Thumbs up	Closed fist, thumb pointing upward	Very good / Bravo / Agreement	Bravo! / Ottimo!

The bacio delle dita (finger kiss) is particularly associated with Italian gastronomy. A chef doing it while tasting their own dish, a customer doing it after a meal: it is the ultimate compliment on the cooking. Outside the gastronomic context, it more generally expresses admiration.

Gestures of refusal, disagreement and warning

Gesture	Description	Meaning	Associated expression
Va’ via!	The edge of one palm strikes the top of the other outstretched arm	Go away / Forget it / Drop it	Va’ via! / Lascia perdere!
Wagging index finger	Index finger swings from left to right, like a windscreen wiper	No / Not a chance / Don’t do that	No no no. / Neanche per sogno.
Corna (horns)	Index and little finger pointing downward or at someone, other fingers folded	Protection against the evil eye (pointing down) / Serious insult (pointing at someone)	Attento! / Cornuto!
Palms facing the other person	Both hands raised, palms facing forward	Stop / Calm down / I have nothing to do with it	Calma! / Non c’entro niente.
Scratching the cheek	Index finger quickly scratches the cheek from top to bottom	Bad deal / It’s complicated / That’s trouble	Che brutta faccenda! / Che guaio!

The corna gesture is one of the most ambiguous in Italy. Pointed downward, it protects against the evil eye — a superstitious tradition that is very widespread, particularly in the South. Pointed directly at someone, it is a serious insult implying that their partner is being unfaithful. The same hand shape, two radically opposite meanings depending on orientation.

Gestures expressing hunger, impatience and urgency

Gesture	Description	Meaning	Associated expression
Hand on the stomach	Palm rubs the stomach in a circular motion	I’m hungry / It’s delicious	Ho fame. / Che buono!
Finger snap	Repeated finger snapping, hand shaking downward	Hurry up / Quick / Faster!	Sbrigati! / Dai, muoviti!
Tapping the wrist	Index finger taps the wrist where a watch would be	You’re late / It’s time / Hurry up	È tardi! / Sei in ritardo!
Dai! (palm push)	Open palm pushed forward, forearm movement	Come on! / Go for it / You can do it	Dai! / Forza!

Gestures to know before visiting Italy

Some gestures common elsewhere have very different meanings in Italy. Knowing them avoids serious misunderstandings.

Gesture	Meaning elsewhere	Meaning in Italy
Index and middle finger forming a V	Victory / Peace	Victory / Peace (same)
Thumb and index forming an O	OK	OK but also perfetto depending on the movement
Index finger pointed at the temple	Smart / Well thought out	He’s crazy (be careful of context)
Corna (index + little finger)	Rock / Hardcore (concert)	Protection against the evil eye OR serious insult
Hand sweeping horizontally	Informal goodbye	Can mean “go away” or “forget it” depending on tone

Regional variations

Italian gesturing is not uniform across the country. North-South differences are real and noticeable. In the North (Milan, Turin, Venice), gesturing is less pervasive and less frequent. Gestures exist but remain more restrained. A Milanese person in a business meeting gestures little; a Neapolitan in the same meeting gestures naturally throughout the conversation. In the Centre (Rome, Florence), gesturing is present and expressive but in proportions that speakers from other countries find familiar. In the South and in Sicily, gesturing is the richest, most precise and most codified. Naples is historically the city where the greatest number of distinct gestures have been recorded. Some Neapolitan gestures are perfectly incomprehensible to a Milanese person.

Region	Gestural intensity	Characteristic
North (Milan, Turin)	Moderate	Economical gestures, reserved professional context
Centre (Rome, Florence)	Medium to high	Common gestures widely recognised across Italy
South (Naples, Calabria)	High to very high	Most developed gestural system, some local codes
Sicily	High	Gestures influenced by Arab and Greek cultures

Summary table of the most useful gestures

Gesture	Main meaning	Equivalent verbal expression
Fingers gathered into a bunch	What do you want? / Are you joking?	Ma che vuoi?
Finger kiss	It’s delicious / Magnificent	Che buono! / Bravissimo!
Thumb-index circle, rocking hand	Perfect	Perfetto!
Palm edge striking the other arm	Go away / Forget it	Va’ via!
Wagging index finger	No / Not a chance	No!
Hand on the heart	Sincerely	Te lo giuro.
Palms to the sky + shrug	I don’t know	Non lo so. / Boh!
Index under the chin	I don’t care	Me ne frego.
Index rotating against the temple	He’s crazy	Sei matto!
Finger snap	Hurry up	Sbrigati!
Corna pointing down	Protection against the evil eye	Attento al malocchio!
Thumbs up	Bravo / Very good	Ottimo! / Bravo!

Practice exercise

Test your knowledge of Italian gestures: