GCSE Vocabulary

Starting in 2025 BSL will be offered as a GCSE subject. Below is a list of the English translations of 1000 commonly used BSL signs that students are expected to know. In this online dictionary these words are marked with a GCSE vocabulary label.

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Verbs Objects Numerals Adjectives and Adverbs Places Animals People Food Modal verbs Questions Clothing Calendar time Sports School terminology Function terms Time related terms Colours Abstract concepts Deaf related terms Equality Name signs Pandemic

Verbs

accept
arrive
ask
believe
born
break
bring
buy
change
come
communicate
continue
cook
do
drink
drive
drove
eat
encourage
enter
exist
explain
feel
find
finish
fish
fix
fly
follow
forget
get
give
go
grow up
happen
have
hear
help
hold
interpret
involve
join
kick
know
know not
laugh
learn
leave
leave-alone
like
live
look
look after
love
make
marry
mean
meet
mix
move
negotiate
pay
pick
play
progress
put aside
read
remember
saw
say
search
see
send text
shift
shock
show
sign
sign chat
sit
sleep
smell
speak
stand
start
stay
stop
take
talk
teach
telephone
tell
think
travel
try
understand
use
visit
wait
wake up
walk
want
watch
wonder
work
write

Objects

airplane
airport
ball
bed
bicycle
blanket
boat
body
book
broadband
bus
bus pass
cable
car
ceiling light
chest of drawers
computer
cup
cupboard
duvet
flat
fork
google
group
hair
hairdryer
hand
helicopter
house
internet
kettle
kilogram
knife
lift
lorry
microwave
mile
mobile phone
mobile telephone
money
moon
motorbike
mountain
penny
pillow
plate
pound
railway station
river
sat nav
scissors
sea
sheet
sky
spoon
stairs
star
sun
table lamp
taxi
television
ticket
toaster
toothbrush
train
tram
tube
uber
ufo
vacuum cleaner
wallet
water
way
wifi

Numerals

billion
eight
eighteen
eighteenth
eighth
eighty
eleven
eleventh
fifteen
fifteenth
fifth
fifty
first ordinal
five
forty
four
fourteen
fourteenth
fourth
hundred
hundredth
million
nine
nineteen
nineteenth
ninety
ninth
one
second
seven
seventeen
seventeenth
seventh
seventy
six
sixteen
sixteenth
sixth
sixty
ten
tenth
third
thirteen
thirteenth
thirty
thousand
thousandth
three
twelfth
twelve
twentieth
twenty
two
zero

Adjectives and Adverbs

again
all
always
bad
best
better
big
different
easy
enough
every
evil
fantastic
far
fed up
few
first
full
funny
good
half
happy
hard
high
ill
interesting
last
little
lots
many
medical
more
most
new
old
other
painful
patient
perfect
plenty
ready
real
really
right
same
small
some
still
strict
strong
tired
top
true
very
well
worse
wrong
young

Places

Belfast
Birmingham
Blackpool
Brighton
China
Denmark
Dublin
Edinburgh
England
Finland
France
Gaelic
Germany
Glasgow
Greece
India
Ireland
Italy
Japan
Leeds
Leicester
Liverpool
London
Manchester
Northern Ireland
Norway
Pakistan
Paris
Portsmouth
Portugal
Rome
Russia
Scotland
Spain
Sweden
Usa
Wales
Welsh
area
bank
café
club
english
farm
home
hospital
pub
room
shop
world

Animals

bat
bird
butterfly
cat
chicken
cockerel
cow
deer
dog
duck
elephant
frog
giraffe
goat
horse
insect
lion
mouse
pig
rhino
sheep
snake
tiger

People

actor
aunt
baby
baker
boss
both of us
boy
boyfriend
brother
builder
carpenter
child
children
cook
cousin
daughter
dentist interpreter
doctor
electrician
family
father
friend
girl
girlfriend
grandfather
grandmother
hairdresser
king
lady
man
monster
mother
nephew
niece
nurse
parents
people
person
plumber
prince
princess
queen
robot
singer
sister
son
spouse
staff
teacher
translator
twins
uncle
witch
wizard
woman

Food

afternoon meal
apple
bacon
banana
beer
biscuit
bread
breakfast
burger
cake
carrot
cheese
cherry
chips
chocolate
coffee
cola
cream
crisps
egg
evening meal
fish
food
grape
gravy
ice cream
meat
midday meal
milk
noodles
orange
pie
pizza
potato
recipe
rice
salad
sausage
snack
strawberry
sugar
takeaway
tea
tomato
wine

Modal verbs

can
can't
must
should
will
won't

Questions

how
how far
how many
how much
how old
what
when
where
which
why

Clothing

belt
boots
bra
dress
eyeglasses
gloves
hat
hoodie
jacket
jumper
necklace
scarf
shirt
shoes
skirt
socks
tee-shirt
tie
trousers
underwear
vest
watch

Calendar time

age
april
august
autumn
date
day
december
february
fortnight
friday
hour
january
july
june
march
may
minute
monday
month
morning
night
november
october
saturday
september
spring
summer
sunday
thursday
today
tuesday
wednesday
week
winter
year

Sports

american football
ballet
basketball
box
ceilidh
compete
competition
cricket
dance
deaflympics
field
football
goal
golf
hockey
judge
keep fit
league
medal
netball
paralympics
partner
rock and roll
rugby
rules
run
score
skating
skiing
sport
stadium
swim
team
tennis
torch

School terminology

6th form
art
biology
chemistry
class
college
computing
essay
examination
geography
history
homework
lesson
maths
music
physics
poetry
school
science
theatre
university

Function terms

about
and
because
but
if
in
next
on
or
over
through
under
with

Time related terms

after
before
later on
long time ago
now
only
past
then
time
timespan
today
tomorrow
yesterday

Colours

black
blue
brown
green
grey
pink
red
white
yellow

Abstract concepts

action
amazon
association
course
culture
education
everything
experience
fantasy
film
fingerspelling
holiday
job
language
life
murder
name
netflix
poem
police
problem
robbery
sign
something
story
thriller
title
word

Deaf related terms

cochlear implant
deaf
hard of hearing
hearing
hearing aid
oral

Equality

asian
bisexual
black race
brown
gay
lesbian
lgbtqia
non-binary
queer
race
rainbow
transgender

Name signs

Winston Churchill

Pandemic

cough
covid
lockdown
mask
pandemic
social distancing
test
test swab
vaccine