Most gestures are inherently ambiguous. A wink, for example, can be an invitation or a warning. A wave can mean hello or go away.
Today I was trying to complete this phrase: palms up in a gesture of _____? I was stymied because that gesture seems to have an unusually wide range of possible meanings.
In Gesture: Visible Action as Utterance, Adam Kendon writes:
Open hand Supine (or “palm up”) family gestures…are used in contexts where the speaker is offering, giving or showing something or requesting the reception of something. It also includes Continue reading “Palms Up Gesture”