Body language: hugs

I thought since this is the season when you get together with family and friends, I'd blog about hugs.

You'd think that a hug is a hug, but there are a lot of different kinds, and not all of them are the pleasant kind. A hug can reveal a lot about the two people and the relationship between them.

The A-frame hug

In this type of hug, the two huggers stand two feet apart, lean over, and only touch each other's shoulders. With their rear ends sticking out, they seem to form an A frame. Sometimes, the A-frame hug also includes air kisses.

The wallet rub hug

This is also called the side or one-arm hug. Two people stand side-by-side and hug with one arm around the other's shoulder or waist.

The baby burp hug

While hugging, the two people pat each other on the back as if burping a baby.

The jock-twirl hug

One of the huggers lifts the other of the ground and twirls him or her around.

The full-body hug

This is a hug with maximum body contact, so it's usually only shared with lovers or someone you're very close to.

The cheek hug

The two people press their cheeks against each other while they hug. This can also be done while one of them is sitting and the other is standing.

The shug

This is a combination of a hug and a handshake. While you shake hands, you lean forward a bit for a one-armed hug. The handshake creates a barrier between the two huggers, so this type of hug isn't very intimate at all.

The bear hug

The bear hug is the same as the full-body hug, but it's much tighter.

Filed under: body language