Spanish · Hand Gestures · hand gesture
Medir con la palma hacia abajo
Insult: you measure ANIMALS palm-down, people palm-sideways
genuinely rude; friends only, never at work
The gesture
"Show a person's height with your palm flat, facing down"
What your hand is actually doing.
How to use it
A quiet cultural landmine. In Mexico you indicate a person's height with your hand turned vertical, edge down; you use the flat palm-down only for animals and objects. Measure a person's height palm-down and you've implied they're a beast — sometimes done on purpose as a subtle insult. Do it by accident and locals will wince or laugh; now you know why.
Heard in the wild
—¿De qué tamaño es tu perro? —(palma abajo) Así. //de una persona: palma de lado.
—How tall is your dog? —(palm down) About this. //For a person: turn the palm sideways.
Where it lands
Mexico & much of Latin America
Quick answers
- What does "Medir con la palma hacia abajo" mean?
- In Spanish, "Medir con la palma hacia abajo" means "Insult: you measure ANIMALS palm-down, people palm-sideways". Literally it's "Show a person's height with your palm flat, facing down". A quiet cultural landmine. In Mexico you indicate a person's height with your hand turned vertical, edge down; you use the flat palm-down only for animals and objects. Measure a person's height palm-down and you've implied they're a beast — sometimes done on purpose as a subtle insult. Do it by accident and locals will wince or laugh; now you know why.
- Is "Medir con la palma hacia abajo" offensive?
- It's genuinely rude — a 3/5 (Watch your audience) on the Punch-o-Meter. Fine among friends, never at work or with people you've just met.
- How do you pronounce "Medir con la palma hacia abajo"?
- This one's a hand gesture — there's nothing to pronounce. Show a person's height with your palm flat, facing down.
Related in Spanish
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