Describing someone’s physical stance can be notoriously difficult — and if you haven’t heard the phrase “arms akimbo” before, you’re likely to find uses for it in everyday life very quickly! Learn more about this confident stance, and where the term came from, in this post.
Meaning
The phrase “arms akimbo” refers to a physical stance in which a person has both hands on their hips and their elbows are pointed outward, so that the arms form a triangular shape.
When someone takes on an arms akimbo stance, the fingers may point to their back, or in front of them.
Before you use the phrase arms akimbo, you should know that it can refer to:
- The aforementioned stance alone.
- The aforementioned stance in combination with a confident, aggressive, impatient, or arrogant attitude.
“Akimbo” can also be used without preceding it with “arms”.
Example Usage
Are you not sure how to incorporate the phrase “arms akimbo” into a sentence? These examples are sure to help you out!
- “My little girl was standing there confidently, arms akimbo, telling me in no uncertain terms that we should have cupcakes for dinner.”
- “Before you start this easy core exercise, it helps if you relax, standing with your hips shoulder-width apart and arms akimbo.”
- “If you want to come across as confident and proud, approach people with arms akimbo and a slight smile.”
Origin
“Arms akimbo” is one of those curious terms with an even stranger history.
Although it is not clear where the phrase first originated, we do know that the famous literary figure Geoffrey Chaucer used its “predecessor” in the noted work The Canterbury Tales, which he wrote between the years of 1387 and 1400 in Middle English.
The sentence “the hoost... set his hond in kenebowe” appeared in this work, and it is precisely this fairly unrecognizable “kenebowe” that later morphed into the “akimbo” we know today.
“Arms akimbo” appears to have become the one standardized way to describe this stance — and the confidence or arrogance now associated with it — only in the twentieth century.
Before that, other variations that have been in used included “kenbow”, “akembo”, “agembo”, and even “kemboll”.
It is interesting to note that “akimbo” didn’t appear in any other context besides “arms akimbo” until fairly recently.
UK comedians The League of Gentlemen have introduced the phrase “legs akimbo”, while there is also a 2019 movie called Guns Akimbo.
In modern English, you can use the phrase “arms akimbo” to describe the common stance, in which someone places their hands on their hips and juts their elbows outward, but the phrase has come to be associated with self-confidence and even aggression as well.
Phrases Similar to Arms Akimbo
There are no other phrases that are directly synonymous with “ arms akimbo”. However, the so-called “superman” stance is similar, in that the person places their hands on their hips, with their fingers pointing to the back.
A superman stance also requires looking up, and is said to be a way to gain confidence.
Phrases Opposite to Arms Akimbo
There are no phrases with a directly opposite meaning. You can, however, say “legs akimbo” to mean knees pointing outward, while sitting down.
What Is the Correct Saying?
The correct saying is “arms akimbo”. It refers to a stance in which someone places their hands on their hips and points their elbows outward. Arms akimbo is typically associated with confidence.
Ways People May Say Arms Akimbo Incorrectly
As the long history of this phrase shows, “arms akimbo” has undergone many transformations, morphing from “kenebowe” into “akimbo” over time.
Once you know what the stance looks like, and that it is linked to a confident attitude, there really is no incorrect way to use it.
Acceptable Ways to Phrase Arms Akimbo
You can say that someone who has their hands on their hips and their elbows pointed out has their arms akimbo. You can call on someone to hold their arms akimbo if you are describing an exercise as well.