How to Sign "Read" in American Sign Language (ASL)

Hold both hands flat with palms up, like you're holding an open book to sign "read" in ASL. Your stronger hand moves from left to right across your other palm, copying how we read words on a page, and this simple motion helps show the basic meaning of reading in sign language. You can change how fast you move your hand to show different kinds of reading - quick for skimming, slow for deep reading. Modern signers keep these same movements but might tilt their hands a bit differently when talking about reading on phones or tablets instead of books.