gestures

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of gesture.

   The actor relied on broad gestures to reach the back of the theater.

   Diplomatic gestures between the two nations eased years of tension.

   Note

   Only the countable uses of gesture take a plural. These include a speaker's movements, the small acts and remarks that signal an attitude, and the swipes a touchscreen reads as commands. Uncountable gesture, meaning movement as a means of expression in general, has no plural. The same spelling also serves the present-tense verb. A determiner such as his or these marks the noun, and a subject in front marks the verb.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of gesture.

   The guide gestures at the painting as he explains its history.

   Whenever the music swells, the conductor gestures sharply for more volume.

   Note

   A present-tense verb that fits several patterns. On its own it means moving in order to communicate, as in she gestures at the door. With an object, the object is the message: he gestures his approval. It can also direct someone, followed by an infinitive or a destination: the guard gestures us to sit, or gestures them inside. Each pattern keeps the -s whenever the subject is he, she or it.

Showing meanings only. Show all 2