If a guy recently winked at you then you’re probably wondering why he did it and what it might mean.

This post will help you figure out why he might have winked at you and help you to make sense of it as it happens in the future.

So, what does it mean if a guy winks at you? When a guy winks at you, it could mean that he is attracted to you especially if he only does it with you, he does it repeatedly and if he shows other signs of attraction around you. He might also do it to let you in on a lie, to say hello, to let you know he has you covered for something or to see if you’re ok.

Since there are a number of reasons why a guy will wink at you it is important to consider the context of how it happens and the body language that he was showing.

By doing that you’ll be able to get a better idea of the motivations that he had behind winking at you.

Reasons why a guy will wink at you

Each of the different reasons why a guy will wink at you will likely come with a number of clues in his body language.

Below, I will mention a number of reasons why a guy will wink at you and the body language signals that you should expect to see with them.

He’s attracted to you

If a guy only winks at you and he changes his body language around you in a positive way then it would make it likely that he did it due to being attracted to you.

If he did do it due to being attracted to you then it would be likely that he would have shown attraction to you in other ways as well which can include:

• Holding prolonged eye contact with you
• Having dilated pupils when looking at you
• Touching you more than other people in the group
• Standing in your personal space when talking to you
• Adjusting his hair or clothing when he notices you
• Positioning himself to be near you
• Aiming his feet at you when he is around you
• Sitting or standing with a more upright posture when he notices you
• Standing or sitting in a way that shows his crotch area such as with the hands on the hips
• Showing signs of anxiousness when you’re with other men
• Staring at you then quickly looking away, smiling or even winking when you notice
• Asking you more questions than his other friends when you’re around
• Mirroring your body language
• Laughing and looking to see if you are as well
• Making plans based on your schedule
• Asking your friends about you
• Blinking more frequently when talking to you
• Talking with a deeper voice than normal
• Looking at your lips when talking to you

He wants to be more than just friends

If he has been your friend for a while and he hasn’t winked at you before then it could be a sign that he wants to be more than just friends with you.

If that is why he winked at you then it would be likely that he would have been showing signs of attraction when around you that you haven’t picked up on.

It would be especially likely that he would get anxious when you’re with other men, make plans based on yours, get defensive when other men are around, find excuses to touch you, point his feet at you and that he would show signs of nervousness around you.

To say “I got you”

Sometimes a person will wink at another person to say “haha I got you” when the person just did something sneaky to them.

This could be why he winked at you.

If that is the case then it would be likely that he would have done it after doing something that he knows you would be annoyed with and it seemed like he got away with it. It would be likely that he would have shown a half sort of smile as well while looking at you.

To say “I got away with it”

One reason that a guy might wink at you is to let you know that they got away with something.

This would likely be easy to identify as the reason based on the context of how he did it. Obviously, it would be likely that he would do it shortly after doing something mischievous or shortly after finding out that he got away with it.

To suggest “I have you covered”

One reason that a guy might wink at you is when he knows something that you don’t want other people to know and he is letting you know that he won’t let anyone in on your secret.

He would be more likely to do this if it is a guy that you are friends with and one that knows things about you that you have told him in the past.

To signal that he did something mischievous

One reason that a guy might wink at you is that he is doing something mischievous and he is letting you in on it.

This would be more likely to happen when he is talking about something with someone that he knows a secret about or when he is doing something that he shouldn’t be.

To make a joke less personal

The reason that he might have winked at you was that he was trying to make a joke less personal.

By winking at you when telling you a joke it might have been his way of suggesting to you that he didn’t really mean to cause offense to you.

To say “are you ok”

If he winked at you when you were in an uncertain situation then it could be the case that he was trying to see if you were ok.

If that is why he did it then it would be likely that he is someone that you know well and you may have been showing signs of stress or you might have been with a person that he doesn’t think that you like.

To let you in on a lie

The reason that he might have winked at you could be that he was lying about something and he was letting you in on it.

In this case, it would be likely that he would have been showing some signs of deception. These can include talking at a different pitch than normal, rubbing behaviors, touching or scratching the neck, coughing, tapping the feet, blinking more, showing pupil constriction, showing tight lips and touching the mouth.

Consider the context of when he winked

The context of when he did it will likely give you a number of clues as to why he did it.

Did he do it after saying something?

If he winked at you after saying something then it would make it more likely that he was letting you in on a lie, trying to make a joke less personal or that he was suggesting that he has you covered. It would be necessary to consider what was being talked about to figure out exactly why he did it.

After staring at you?

If he did it after staring at you then it would make it more likely that he did it either because he was attracted to you or if he was trying to see if you were ok. It would be helpful, in this case, to consider the relationship that you have with him and the body language that he was showing.

After making a joke?

If he winked at you after making a joke then it would be a lot more likely that he was trying to make it less personal.

After doing something?

If he did it after doing something then it would be more likely that he was letting you know that he was being mischievous or he might have been being spiteful and saying “I got you.”

Consider the location

The location that he did it in would also likely help you to figure out the reason that he did it.

In a business setting

If he did it in a business setting then it would be more likely that he did it to suggest that he won’t say something about you if he knows a secret, he was being mischievous or he might have been trying to see if you were ok. He still might have done it due to being attracted to you so you should consider the body language signals that he shows around you.

In a social setting

If he did it in a more social setting then it would make it more likely that he did it due to attraction. However, he still might have done it for one of the other reasons discussed so you should consider the body language he showed and what was happening at around the time that he did it.

Consider his normal behavior

When trying to understand what a guy’s body language might be telling you it would be helpful to know what his body language normally looks like.

If you notice that he tends to wink at other people as well and his body language doesn’t really change much around you then it would suggest that he has more of a natural habit of winking.

Whereas, if he doesn’t normally do it with other people and his body language does seem to be different when he’s around you then it would be more likely that he did it due to attraction assuming he shows signs of attraction. However, he might have done it for a different reason so, make sure to consider the context of how he did it.

Consider his culture

Winking can have different meanings in different cultures so you should make sure to consider the culture that he is from.

Even if he is from a culture where it is normal to wink at people he still might have done it for one of the reasons above. So, you should consider the context of how it happened and the body language that he showed around you.

Related questions

What does it mean when a guy winks at you a lot? If a guy often winks at you then it would make it more likely that he does it due to being attracted to you so you should look for other signs of attraction in his body language. If you notice that he winks at other people as well then it would be more likely that he naturally does it as a way of saying “hello.”

What does it mean when a guy winks at you and smiles? If a guy winks at you and smiles it would be likely that he did it due to being attracted to you especially if he did it when you caught him staring at you. However, he might have been letting you in on him being mischievous at that moment, trying to see if you were ok or he might have been saying “I got you” in a spiteful way after doing something that he knows would annoy you.

What does it mean when a guy winks at you when saying goodbye? If a guy does it when saying goodbye then it could just be his way of saying goodbye. It could be a sign that he is attracted to you in which case he would show it in his body language when he is around you.

What does it mean if a guy winks at you at work? If he does it while you’re at work then it would be more likely that he was either trying to see if you were ok, letting you know that he wouldn’t say something that he knew you wouldn’t want him to say or that he was being mischievous. He still might have done it due to attraction in which case he would likely show you other signs of attraction when he’s around you.