Talk to the hand (expression)
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"Talk to the hand" (or "tell it to the hand") is a slang phrase associated with the 1990s. It originated as a sarcastic way of saying one does not want to hear what the person who is speaking is saying. It is often elongated to a phrase such as "Talk to the hand, because the ears ain't listening" or "Talk to the hand, because the face ain't listening."


Meaning and usage

Often considered to be sarcastic or obnoxious, the phrase was popularized by actor and comedian
Martin Lawrence Martin Fitzgerald LawrenceStated in interview on ''Inside the Actors Studio'' (born April 16, 1965) is an American comedian and actor. He came to fame during the 1990s, establishing a Hollywood career as a leading actor. He got his start playin ...
in his 1992 sitcom ''
Martin Martin may refer to: Places * Martin City (disambiguation) * Martin County (disambiguation) * Martin Township (disambiguation) Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Austr ...
''. It was formally reported from as early as 1995, when a local Indianapolis magazine story noted "Talk to the hand—The phrase, which means, '
Shut up Shut may refer to: *Yana Shut (born 1997), Belarusian snooker and pool player. * ''Shut'' (1988 film), directed by Andrei Andreyevich Eshpai. * ''Shut'' (2009 film), starring Lee Baxter. * ''Shut'' or ''šwt'', "shadow", an Ancient Egyptian conce ...
', is accompanied by a hand in front of the victim's face." It is usually accompanied by the gesture of extending one arm toward the other person, with the palm of that hand facing the person being insulted, in the manner of the gesture to stop. Use of the phrase was noted to be a passing trend, as one author noted in advising writers against the use of quickly dated slang: "Slang is trendy. Last year every young person I knew was saying 'Talk to the hand'. Now no one even remembers 'Talk to the hand'".
Lynne Truss Lynne Truss (born 31 May 1955) is an English author, journalist, novelist, and radio broadcaster and dramatist. She is arguably best known for her championing of correctness and aesthetics in the English language, which is the subject of her ...
, noted for writing the bestselling ''
Eats, Shoots & Leaves ''Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation'' is a non-fiction book written by Lynne Truss, the former host of BBC Radio 4's '' Cutting a Dash'' programme. In the book, published in 2003, Truss bemoans the state of punct ...
'', used the phrase as the title and prime example in her 2006 book, ''Talk to the Hand: The Utter Bloody Rudeness of the World Today''. In 2001, British R&B girl group
Honeyz The Honeyz are a British R&B girl group, composed of members Celena Cherry and Mariama Goodman. The group had five UK top 10 hits between 1998 and 2000, with " Finally Found" (1998), " End of the Line" (1998), " Love of a Lifetime" (1999), " ...
released the single " Talk to the Hand", and in 2018 Norwegian pop singer,
Aleksander Walmann Aleksander Walmann Åsgården (born 12 January 1986) is a Norwegian singer and songwriter. He represented Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 alongside Jowst with the song "Grab the Moment", finishing in 10th place. Early life and care ...
released a single with the same title as well, taking part in the Norwegian preselection show for the Eurovision Song Contest. The phrase and the gesture were notably featured in '' Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines'' (2003), where they were used by the titular character, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger. In 2006, French spoof rap group
Fatal Bazooka Fatal Bazooka () is a French comedy rap character by Michaël Youn, and a former band including himself, Vincent Desagnat and Benjamin Morgaine. The act originated in a 2002 TV show which its members hosted at the time. Fatal Bazooka is also t ...
recorded a song called "
Parle à ma main "Parle à ma main" ( French for " Talk to the hand") is a 2006 song recorded by French act Fatal Bazooka featuring Yelle. It was the fifth and last single from the album '' T'as vu'', and was released in November 2007. It was particularly success ...
" ( French for "Talk to my hand") featuring
Yelle Yelle is a French band founded by lead singer and namesake Yelle (Julie Budet) and GrandMarnier (Jean-François Perrier). A third member, Tepr (Tanguy Destable), joined the band before the recording of their debut album. Yelle and GrandMarnier b ...
. In '' Mario Strikers Charged'', a Birdo does this gesture to
Princess Peach is a fictional character in Nintendo's ''Mario'' franchise, created by Shigeru Miyamoto and introduced in the 1985 original '' Super Mario Bros.'' installment. She is the princess regnant and ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom, where she resides ...
whenever she lashes out at her teammates due to the opponent scoring a goal.


See also

* Mountza


Notes

{{Gestures African-American slang Hand gestures 1990s slang