gesticulate

[ je-stik-yuh-leyt ]
See synonyms for: gesticulategesticulatedgesticulatesgesticulating on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object),ges·tic·u·lat·ed, ges·tic·u·lat·ing.
  1. to make or use gestures, especially in an animated or excited manner with or instead of speech.

verb (used with object),ges·tic·u·lat·ed, ges·tic·u·lat·ing.
  1. to express by gesturing.

Origin of gesticulate

1
1595–1605; <Latin gesticulātus (past participle of gesticulārī), equivalent to Late Latin (assumed in Latin ) gesticul(us) gesture (diminutive of gestus;see gestic, -cule1) + -ātus-ate1

Other words for gesticulate

Other words from gesticulate

  • ges·tic·u·la·tive, ges·tic·u·la·to·ry [je-stik-yuh-luh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee], /dʒɛˈstɪk yə ləˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i/, adjective
  • ges·tic·u·la·tor, noun
  • o·ver·ges·tic·u·late, verb, o·ver·ges·tic·u·lat·ed, o·ver·ges·tic·u·lat·ing.
  • o·ver·ges·tic·u·la·tive, adjective
  • o·ver·ges·tic·u·la·tive·ly, adverb
  • un·ges·tic·u·lat·ing, adjective
  • un·ges·tic·u·la·tive, adjective
  • un·ges·tic·u·la·to·ry, adjective

Words Nearby gesticulate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use gesticulate in a sentence

  • BB-8 moves fluidly and playfully, and K-2SO walks with a lazy gait and gesticulates wildly, while their counterparts move rigidly and precisely.

  • At first he kept his hands behind his back in a tight knot; then he began to gesticulate as he turned.

  • My subordinates may gird their loins to leap and run and gesticulate, shedding their own blood the while in crimson streams.

    Sarchedon | G. J. (George John) Whyte-Melville
  • This is particularly the case with people who are somewhat theatrical and hence gesticulate too much.

    Criminal Psychology | Hans Gross
  • The collar of his coat on the right side had an unpleasant way of flying up whenever he raised his arm to gesticulate.

  • One was talking loquaciously, using his free arm, on which hung a cane, to gesticulate.

    Long Live the King | Mary Roberts Rinehart

British Dictionary definitions for gesticulate

gesticulate

/ (dʒɛˈstɪkjʊˌleɪt) /


verb
  1. to express by or make gestures

Origin of gesticulate

1
C17: from Latin gesticulārī, from Latin gesticulus (unattested except in Late Latin) gesture, diminutive of gestus gesture, from gerere to bear, conduct

Derived forms of gesticulate

  • gesticulative, adjective
  • gesticulator, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012