GCSE Media Studies · key term

Non-verbal code

Definition

A way of communicating meaning without words, such as an image, gesture or facial expression.

Used by AQA

Paper 1, Paper 2

Meaning communicated without words, through features such as dress, facial expression, gesture or body movement.
Non-verbal codes communicate without words. Dress, appearance, facial expression and body movement can suggest emotion, status or relationships. A smile may suggest pleasure, but a smile combined with a dismissive gesture could suggest mockery.
Revise: Technical, print, symbolic and verbal codes
A feature that communicates meaning without words, such as an image, colour or facial expression.
Revise: Paper 1 Questions 1 and 2: the unseen source

1
Use terminology accurately: written words are verbal codes; images are non-verbal codes. Anchorage describes how words guide the interpretation of an image.
2
For verbal codes, analyse words, quotations, slogans and body copy. A model’s expression or pose is a non-verbal code.

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