Most languages use spoken arbitrary symbols to access the conceptual system. Moreover, the link from spoken words to meaning is demonstrably automatic. Sign languages, by contrast, employ many iconic manual gestures. While some signs are arbitrary it is unclear whether such arbitrary signs automatically activate the conceptual system. To address this question, we examine the propensity of arbitrary colour signs in American Sign Language (ASL) to induce Stroop interference. Three experiments

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... ited colour naming of coloured videos depicting colour ASL signseither congruent or incongruent with video colourand an unrelated condition. Results showed that colour identification is modulated by its congruency with the ASL sign, and this finding replicated irrespective of response modesigning vs. button-pressand the presence of congruent trials. These findings indicate that arbitrary signs automatically activate their meanings. We conclude that the capacity to link arbitrary phonological forms and meanings is an amodal design feature of language.