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A wink is a facial expression
Facial expression

A facial expression results from one or more motions or positions of the muscles of the face. These movements convey the emotional state of the individual to observers....
 made by briefly closing one eye
Eye

Eyes are Organ that detect light, and send signals along the optic nerve to the visual system and other areas of the brain. Complex optical systems with resolving power have come in ten fundamentally different forms, and 96% of animal species possess a complex optical system....
. A wink is an informal mode of communication usually signaling, depending on context, sexual attraction
Sexual attraction

Sexual attraction refers to a person's ability to Attractiveness in a sexual or erotic manner the interest of another person.Which aspects of sexual attraction have had greatest influence to humans at different points in time have differed between cultures and regions....
, or shared hidden knowledge or intent.

estern culture, it may be used to communicate sexual intentions, ranging from flirtation to an explicit invitation.

atin American cultures, winking may also be a romantic or sexual invitation, but may also be used a casual sign of recognition or of acceptance of behavior among friends.

any Asian countries, winking may be seen as an offensive gesture.






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Wink
A wink is a facial expression
Facial expression

A facial expression results from one or more motions or positions of the muscles of the face. These movements convey the emotional state of the individual to observers....
 made by briefly closing one eye
Eye

Eyes are Organ that detect light, and send signals along the optic nerve to the visual system and other areas of the brain. Complex optical systems with resolving power have come in ten fundamentally different forms, and 96% of animal species possess a complex optical system....
. A wink is an informal mode of communication usually signaling, depending on context, sexual attraction
Sexual attraction

Sexual attraction refers to a person's ability to Attractiveness in a sexual or erotic manner the interest of another person.Which aspects of sexual attraction have had greatest influence to humans at different points in time have differed between cultures and regions....
, or shared hidden knowledge or intent.

Cultural differences


The West

In Western culture, it may be used to communicate sexual intentions, ranging from flirtation to an explicit invitation.

Latin America

In Latin American cultures, winking may also be a romantic or sexual invitation, but may also be used a casual sign of recognition or of acceptance of behavior among friends.

Asia

In many Asian countries, winking may be seen as an offensive gesture. In India
India

India, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and outlying territories by total area country by geographical area, the List of countries by population country, and the most populous liberal democracy in the world....
, it may be viewed as an insult or an obscene sexual proposition.

Africa

Nigeria
Nigeria

Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federation constitutional republic comprising States of Nigeria and one Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria....
n adults may wink to signal children to leave the room.

Noted examples


  • In the famous Monty Python
    Monty Python

    Monty Python is a group of six comedians who created Monty Python's Flying Circus, a British television comedy sketch show that first aired on the BBC on October 5, 1969....
     sketch, Nudge Nudge
    Nudge Nudge

    Candid Photography, better known as "Nudge Nudge", is a sketch comedy from the third Monty Python's Flying Circus episode, "List of Monty Python's Flying Circus episodes#3....
    , a younger man nervously inquires an older gentleman about sex
    Sexual intercourse

    Sexual intercourse, also known as copulation or coitus, commonly refers to the act in which the Penis enters the Vagina. The two entities may be of opposite sexes or not, or they may be hermaphrodite, as is the case with snails....
     through innuendo
    Innuendo

    An innuendo is, according to the Advanced Oxford Learner's Dictionary an indirect remark about somebody or something, usually suggesting something bad or rude; the use of remarks like this: "innuendoes about her private life" or "The song is full of sexual innuendo." ...
    , reiterating the phrase "nudge nudge wink wink" after his questions in an attempt to indicate that his innocent-sounding questions are intended to be of a sexual nature.


  • During the 2008 United States vice-presidential debate
    United States vice-presidential debate, 2008

    The 2008 United States vice-presidential debate, took place on October 2, 2008, between U.S. Vice President of the United States candidates Sarah Palin, the Governor of Alaska of Alaska, and Joe Biden, the senior United States Senate for Delaware, at Washington University in St....
    , Republican
    Republican Party (United States)

    The Republican Party is one of the two major party contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party . It is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP....
     candidate Sarah Palin
    Sarah Palin

    Sarah Louise Palin is the List of Governors of Alaska of the United States state of Alaska. Palin was a member of the Wasilla, Alaska, city council from 1992 to 1996 and the city's mayor from 1996 to 2002....
     winked at the audience several times. Her behaviour was considered to be highly unusual in the context of a formal political debate and received considerable media attention. While some conservative pundits defended Palin, many commentators and voters were critical of and even offended by her conduct


  • In the 2004, Science fiction movie, I, Robot (film)
    I, Robot (film)

    I, Robot is a science fiction film set in a world where humans and humanoid robots interact . It was directed by Alex Proyas, written by Jeff Vintar, and starred Will Smith....
    , Robot named Sonny learns to wink, using it as a gesture of trust to Detective Spooner (Will Smith
    Will Smith

    Willard Christopher "Will" Smith, Jr. is an United Statesn actor, film producer and rapping. He has enjoyed success in music, television and film....
    .


Physiological ability

Not all humans are able to wink voluntarily, and some can only wink one (usually the non-dominant
Ocular dominance

Ocular dominance, sometimes called eye dominance or eyedness, is the tendency to prefer visual perception input from one eye to the other....
) eye. Others are far better at winking one eye and find it awkward to wink the other.

Abnormalities

Some people, especially children and adolescents show a habit of winking involuntarily under stress, often without their own knowledge. It is considered as a symptom of Tourette Syndrome
Tourette syndrome

Tourette syndrome is an heredity Neuropsychiatry disorder with onset in childhood, characterized by the presence of multiple physical tics and at least one vocal tic; these tics characteristically wax and wane....
. It usually gets better with increasing age.

See also

  • Body language
    Body language

    Body language is a term for communication using body movements or gestures instead of, or in addition to, sounds, verbal language or other communication....
  • Blink
    Blink

    Blinking is the rapid closing and opening of the eyelid. It is an essential function of the eye that helps spread tears across and remove irritants from the surface of the cornea and conjunctiva....
  • Face
    Face

    The term face refers to the central sense organ complex, for those animals that have one, normally on the ventral surface of the head and can depending on the definition in the human case, include the hair, forehead, eyebrow, eyes, nose, ears, cheeks, mouth, lips, philtrum, tooth, skin, and chin....