The Clock and Time

KEY POINTS

All numbers associated with time are signed with the palm orientation outward. The times 1:00-9:00 can use number incorporation to sign time and the number together. The signs 10:00-12:00 cannot use number incorporation, and must be signed using the topic>comment structure TIME + 10. To add minutes, simply sign the hour with incorporation (if appropriate) then add the number of minutes. To sign a.m. or p.m., choose the sign that is conceptually accurate for the meaning, such as MORNING, AFTERNOON, or NIGHT.

WATCH

Place the circular portion of the dominant F handshape on the non-dominant wrist, indicating the face of a watch being worn.

MIDNIGHT

The times for noon and midnight have specific signs in ASL. For noon, combine the sign TWELVE with the very beginning of the sign AFTERNOON (straight up, as in halfway through the day). The sign for MIDNIGHT is opposite. Combine the sign for TWELVE and NIGHT.

ADDING DIGITS

To add minutes to your time signs, simply sign the hour as you normally would, pause slightly, then sign the minutes (you know how to sign up to number 30 and will soon learn up to 59). Remember that ASL is not a sign-for-word representation of English or any other spoken language. ASL is a conceptual language, so when interpreting from English to ASL, you want to choose the sign that most closely resembles the concept, or the point, rather than the word itself. You may be tempted to fingerspell A-M or P-M when talking about time. While most Deaf people would understand what you mean, that is not the best conceptual interpretation. Think about a.m.—what does it mean? Technically it means "after midnight," but the concept you are trying to get across is morning, so go ahead and use that sign!

OTHER WAYS TO SIGN #'S

For example, instead of having to sign TIME+3, you simply use the 3 handshape to sign time, and then bring it upward so that the number is easily visible to your communication partner:

DOUBLE DIGIT NUMBERS

However, number incorporation only works for times 1-9. For the double digit numbers that have their own movements (10, 11, 12), you must continue to use the standard topic-comment sentence structure of TIME+10, TIME+11, and TIME+12.

The Clock and Time

Many of the aspects of signing time are the same as signing numbers. However, there are a few important differences to help ensure clarity. When using cardinal numbers (counting), you learned that numbers 1-5 have a palm orientation facing inward. However, when using numbers 1-5 (and all others) to indicate time, you keep the palm orientation towards the other person. Think back to topic-comment sentence structure of ASL. When telling time, your topic is time. Your comment is what the time is, or the number. Therefore, the sentence structure is TIME+#. In ASL, time signs can use number incorporation. This means that the sign itself (in this case, TIME) is combined with the number sign to give more information.

5:00

TIME + 5

9:00

TIME + 9