The American Sign Language Phrase Book (49 page)

That the "2" in the twenties is made with the thumb and index finger rather than the index and second fingers—as it appears in the number 22—is probably due to the fact that ASL has its roots in the old French sign language. In Europe, even hearing people count
one
with the thumb, and
two
with the thumb and index finger.

The remaining numbers from 30 through 99 are done with the numbers 0 through 9. Examples follow:

The number 100 is made by signing the number 1 and the letter
C
:

The numbers between 100 and 999 are made in one of two ways. One may make the number "7-7-7" or one may sign "7-C-7-7":

The numbers 1,000 and 1,000,000 are signed like so:

The numbers "billion" and "trillion" are fingerspelled—there is not a specific sign for them.

Fractions are made the same way they are written, one number above another:

The one-half sign as shown above is usually made more quickly as shown below:

Percentages are made as follows:

Numbers with decimals can also be expressed:

The sign for the decimal may also mean the punctuation mark "period."

Fingerspell your phone number after the sign NUMBER.

Telling time in ASL is usually done exactly in the same way as it is done in English.