[dutzi]

A popular story told to Israeli Defense Army soldiers who serve at checkpoints is of this gesture: https://i.ibb.co/ZBJSY1c/image.png

Apparently, in Italy it sort-of means "go f*ck yourself" (for Italian hnewers, this means "please wait" for the rest of the world).

The story tells about a soldier who once did that gesture to a car carrying some Italian politician, on their way to the West Bank.

Don't remember the rest of the story now, but it did not end well.

[silvanocerza]

> Apparently, in Italy it sort-of means "go f*ck yourself"

No, it doesn't.

It has lots of meanings but the main one could be summed up to "what?".

EDIT: This means "go fuck yourself" in Italy. That's Alberto Sordi by the way.

https://blog.ilgiornale.it/furlan/files/2018/09/Vaffanculo.j...

[MisterTea]

Growing up in a neighborhood that was heavily Italian, I frequently experienced that gesture with my friend after we did something dumb at his house and got in trouble. Either his parents or grandmother would have their hands up in that pinched gesture, shaking them at you while yelling something like "Why in gods name would you two smash [friends sister] toys, put them in dog shit, set them on fire and throw them on the garage roof? Get up there and clean that god damn mess up! And you [me] go home." So yeah, saw that gesture frequently.

[bryanrasmussen]

>It has lots of meanings but the main one could be summed up to "what?".

my experience - although based on neapolitan usage - is more WTF!?!

[silvanocerza]

That too, it also depends on the facial expression. :)

[garblegarble]

>this means "please wait" for the rest of the world

In UK+Ireland I don't think anybody would understand anything from that gesture (certainly to everybody I've just surveyed)

Here, "please wait" would be a palm held up flat, without the fingers/thumb spread ("stop", which would be what I'd expect at an official checkpoint) or the more polite informal version, a raised hand towards the person with index finger raised and usually with a nod (this is what I'd expect at a restaurant or an office for "I see you but I'm busy right now")

[zeckalpha]

I read that as the gesture literally means “go f*ck yourself” in Italian, which in Italian is a relatively mild way of saying “please wait”, not that the rest of the world would use the gesture for “please wait”.

[mkotowski]

> for Italian hnewers, this means "please wait" for the rest of the world

Central Europe here, I doubt this gesture would be understood here that way. The closest meaningful gesture would be demanding money (if the thumb would move along the index finger).

[tspiteri]

It depends on the hand motion.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZk5rAVuNsc&t=15s

[_ZeD_]

that is a totally different gesture (and with the same meaning in italy)

[alberto_ol]

Only in Israel I saw that gesture with the meaning "please wait" and israeli people who travel a lot told me that is only a israeli thing. The italian gesture is slightly different and, as others have already written, doesn't mean "go f*ck yourself".

[gvv]

>(for Italian hnewers, this means "please wait" for the rest of the world).

I would really like to know, out of curiosity, at least 1 country where it means "please wait", I've never encountered it before.