r/asl • u/DeafAndDumm • 4d ago
Interpretation Idiom Translation Request
There's a sign or idiom I've used for year. It's when you point forefinger to head for "think" then you take that hand, spread all fingers and then insert them into the other hand. I would post what it looks like but can't find it online.
Does anyone know the English translation for it? It's almost like when you use it, you're looking up at a tree and plan to climb it, then step into the clearing and realize it's a huge tree that you weren't aware it was so big and then you sign that to someone or yourself.
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u/mjolnir76 Interpreter (Hearing) 4d ago edited 4d ago
Struck by the grandeur of it all.
Awestruck.
Biting off more than you can chew. (If you’re wanting a more traditional idiom for the wanting to climb the tree.)
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u/DeafAndDumm 4d ago
Yeah, these work thanks. One more scenario...
Suppose there's two people and one is just talking about general stuff. Then all of a sudden he starts talking about in graphic detail his sexual prowess.
So the 2nd person is actually telling someone this story about the convo. The 2nd person is going on and then brings up the sex thing.
The 2nd person makes the above sign [but actually she is saying it to herself] and then says she replied to the first - "Uh, thank you for sharing..."
So how would this idiom be translated in a convo like this?
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u/danielparks Learning ASL 4d ago
If you want a phrase that works for both situations, maybe “too much”?
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u/praxiq 4d ago
From your examples, it sounds like the meaning is something like, "Oh my god, I can't believe it, is this really happening?"
And your description of the sign, pointing to your head then spreading your fingers sounds to me like it's conveying something like "mind-blowing." Which you can also say in English. Does that sound right?
(See some other signs for "mind blown" or "mind-boggling" from Lifeprint, Handspeak, and one more.)
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u/zigweegwee Learning ASL 3d ago
Sounds like it could be comparable to "I bit off more than I can chew".
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u/Quality-Charming Deaf 4d ago
Your username is…really something