Gestures are a form of
nonverbal communication in which visible bodily actions are used to communicate important messages, either in place of
speech or together and in parallel with spoken words. Gestures include movement of the
hands,
face, or other parts of the
body. Physical non-verbal communication such as purely
expressive displays,
proxemics, or displays of
joint attention differ from gestures, which communicate specific messages. Gestures are culture-specific and can convey very different meanings in different social or cultural settings. Gesture is distinct from
sign language. Although some gestures, such as the ubiquitous act of pointing, differ little from one place to another, most gestures do not have invariable or universal meanings but connote specific meanings in particular cultures. A single emblematic gesture can have very different significance in different cultural contexts, ranging from complimentary to highly offensive.