The Rightwards Hand emoji 🫱 shows an open palm extended toward the right side of the screen. It means offering, presenting, welcoming, or pointing the way, and it is often used as a handshake gesture when paired with its mirror image, the leftwards hand. It can also signal pushing something aside.
What Does the Rightwards Hand Emoji Mean?
The Rightwards Hand emoji depicts a hand with the palm open and fingers extended, reaching out to the right, and it stands for giving, offering, or showing something.
Unicode describes this character as RIGHTWARDS HAND, and its core meaning comes from the body language it copies. In real life, an outstretched open palm says "here, take this" or "please, after you." The emoji carries that same friendly, open energy into text conversations.
Because the hand points sideways instead of straight up, it also reads as directional. You can use it to say "this way," to hand over the floor in a conversation, or to present an idea as if setting it on a table for everyone to look at.
The Core Ideas Behind the Gesture
- Offering: handing something to another person, whether an object, a favor, or a suggestion.
- Presenting: showing a product, a point, or a piece of news.
- Inviting: gesturing someone forward or toward a space.
- Direction: indicating rightward movement or the right side of a layout.
When Was the Rightwards Hand Emoji Added and Where Does It Fit?
The Rightwards Hand emoji was added in Unicode 14.0 and Emoji 14.0, and it sits in the People & Body category.
Its codepoint is U+1FAF1, and its shortcode is :rightwards_hand:. It arrived alongside a matching leftwards hand, which is why the two are designed as a pair. If you want to browse other gestures in the same family, the People & Body emoji category collects them in one place.
The emoji supports skin tone modifiers, so you can choose a shade that matches your own or the tone you want to represent. This matters for a gesture about connection, since the emoji is most often used to depict a person reaching toward another.
How Do You Use the Rightwards Hand Emoji?
Use the Rightwards Hand emoji whenever you want to hand something to someone, present an idea, or point attention toward the right.
It works best when the gesture adds meaning that words alone do not carry. Think of it as a small visual verb: you are not just saying "here you go," you are physically extending a hand with it. Here are a few realistic ways people use it:
- Here's the draft, go ahead and tear it apart 🫱
- Floor is yours, Maya 🫱 tell us what you found
- New menu just dropped 🫱 lunch specials all week
In each case, the emoji frames the message as something being given or shown. That small shift makes announcements feel warmer and more personal than a plain full stop would.
What Does 🫱 Mean in Texting and on Social Media?
In texting and social posts, 🫱 usually means "here, take this," "over to you," or "check this out," and it often works as a polite way to introduce a link, a photo, or an opinion.
On social media, creators use it to point viewers toward content placed on the right, such as a caption, a product, or a call to action. Because the hand faces right, it can also act as a tiny arrow without looking as blunt as a literal arrow emoji.
Pushing Away and Dismissal
The same open palm can feel different when the context changes. If someone writes a blunt reply and adds 🫱, it can read as pushing a topic aside, as in "I'm not going there" or "talk to the hand." This is a secondary reading, and tone and surrounding words decide it. A friendly message with a smile emoji will land as an offer, while a curt message may land as a brush-off.
The Handshake Effect
When you place 🫱 next to the leftwards hand emoji, the two hands point toward each other and read as a handshake, an agreement, or a handover. People use the pair for deals, collaborations, and "we're good" moments. Placing 🫲🫱 or 🫱🫲 changes which hand appears to reach first, so choose the order that fits your sentence.
How Does the Rightwards Hand Emoji Look on Different Platforms?
The Rightwards Hand emoji looks broadly similar across platforms: an open palm facing the viewer with the fingers extended to the right, though the shading, outline, and finger spacing differ by vendor.
Because this is a newer emoji, it only appears on updated systems. Support depends on your software version:
- Apple: iOS 15.4 and later, macOS 12.3 and later.
- Google: Android 12L and later.
- Microsoft: Windows 11 22H2 and later.
- Samsung: One UI 5.0 and later.
- WhatsApp: version 2.22 and later.
- Twitter: Twemoji 14.0 and later.
If a friend is running older software, they may see an empty box or a question mark instead of the hand. When it matters that your message is understood, such as in a work chat, add a few words so the meaning survives even if the emoji does not render.
Which Emojis Pair Well With 🫱?
The best partners for 🫱 are other hand gestures and expressive faces that clarify whether you are offering, welcoming, or handing off.
The mirror gesture, 🫲 Leftwards Hand, is the obvious match for handshakes and handovers. For greetings, 👋 Waving Hand adds a hello before you extend the offer, as in Welcome aboard 👋🫱.
If you want to compare the neighbors in this gesture family, these are worth knowing:
- ✋ Raised Hand: a stop, a high five, or a request to speak, with the palm facing forward rather than reaching sideways.
- 🤚 Raised Back Of Hand: shows the back of the hand, which reads as a halt or a dismissal.
- 🖐️ Hand With Fingers Splayed: a spread-fingered palm often used for "five" or a loose wave.
- 🖖 Vulcan Salute: the split-finger greeting tied to Star Trek, used for "live long and prosper."
The key difference is direction. Most of these hands face upward or outward at the viewer, while 🫱 reaches across the line of text, which is what makes it feel like an active giving motion.
When Should You Avoid the Rightwards Hand Emoji?
Avoid the Rightwards Hand emoji when your recipient may not see it correctly or when a push-away reading could cause offense.
There are two practical risks. First, older devices may not display it, so an important instruction could arrive as a blank box. Second, an open palm can feel dismissive after a sensitive message, such as turning down a request or ending a discussion. In those cases, a clear sentence works better than a gesture that someone might interpret as brushing them off.
In formal writing, such as contracts, official emails, or customer service replies, the emoji is rarely necessary. In friendly workplace chats it is fine, but keep the tone warm so the offering meaning wins out over the dismissive one.
How Do You Copy and Paste the Rightwards Hand Emoji?
You can copy the Rightwards Hand emoji 🫱 with one click on this page and paste it straight into any message, post, or document.
Click the copy button near the top of the page, then paste it wherever you are writing. If you also want a skin tone variation, choose your preferred shade before copying. To turn a full sentence into emoji, try the Emoji Translator, and to see what people are using right now, check the trending emojis page.
If the emoji appears as a box after pasting, the app or device is probably running software older than the versions listed above. Updating your system usually fixes it, and until then you can write the meaning in words alongside it.
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