[[quoteright:300:[[VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorney http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hand-behind-head.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:300:He's probably talking about his "[[SickeninglySweethearts Dollie]]" again.]]

When nervous, embarrassed, or uncertain -- or when lying -- a character will sometimes rub the back of his neck with one hand, often with a patently false grin or laugh accompanying the gesture. It's so ubiquitous in anime that it might be easier to list examples where someone ''doesn't'' do this.

Related to FacePalm.

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!!Examples

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[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
* Tenchi from ''TenchiMuyo''.
* Ranma in ''RanmaOneHalf''.
* Ja Wangnan from ''TowerOfGod'', especially when drunk and praised.
* Negi in ''MahouSenseiNegima''.
** As well as most of the Baka Rangers, sometimes together.
* Most Son males from ''DragonBallZ''.
* Occurs occasionally in ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'' (for example, Maes and Gracia Hughes rub their necks when Ed, Al, and Nina remark upon Gracia's advanced state of pregnancy).
* Mai in ''Anime/{{Mai-HiME}}'', after Chie asks her about the "crop circle" she created when she arrived at school.
* Sasami in the ''PrettySammy'' series does this fairly frequently when she thinks people have figured out her identity.
* Kakashi did this many times in ''{{Naruto}}'' when trying to brush aside the reasons he was late for practice, or during any other display of ObfuscatingStupidity.
** Naruto does this too, presumably as a homage to ''DragonBall'' (''Naruto'' is full of them).
** Iruka does it too, especially as a child.
** [[spoiler: Naruto's mother, Kushina also does this. Probably where he got it from]]
* In ''{{Mahoraba}}'', it appears Shiratori's hand is glued back there.
* Both Gourry and Xellos of ''{{Slayers}}'' do this rather frequently, though with Xellos it's probably for more worrisome reasons.
* Manga/AzumangaDaioh: While Tomo does this more (in the anime) than all the rest of the main and supporting cast combined, the following have also done it: Kagura (the distant second), Chiyo (twice), Yomi, Chihiro, Yukari, and Minamo (once each).
* All of the ''SailorMoon'' girls have done this, but it's often done by Mako/Lita when talking to a guy she likes or Usagi/Serena after she's [[IdiotHero made another silly mistake.]]
* ManabiStraight: The titular Manabi does this during the reflection meeting in the last episode.
* Matsuda of ''Manga/DeathNote'' does this several times, being the bumbling ButtMonkey.
* The Nohara males in ''ShinChan''.
* Inspector Takayama does this early on in the ''{{Domu}}: A Child's Dream'', embarrassingly asking about supernatural phenomena to a shaman who can tell he's skeptical.
* Ichigo from ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'' scratches the nape of his neck whenever he's feeling awkward.
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[[folder: Comic Books]]
* ''The Phantom Affair'', an arc of the XWingSeries comics drawn by Biukovic, Wedge Antilles does this at at least two points.
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[[folder: FanFiction]]
* Sunny Breeze does this a lot in ''FanFic/RacerAndTheGeek'', especially when [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/81159/racer-and-the-geek Rainbow Dash is involved.]] It's practically OnceAnEpisode.
* Between this trope and MotorMouth, Dan of ''Fanfic/ThawingPermafrost'' finds himself doing one or the other on occasion.
* Once he's gone through CharacterDevelopment (mostly of the falling-in-love sort, but also learning to be humble and to care about others besides himself), Tai Lung does this a great deal in ''Fanfic/ADifferentLesson'', particularly around Tigress.
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[[folder:Film]]
* James Bond, of all people, does this in ''Film/GoldenEye'', after Valentin Zukovsky calls him a "charming, sophisticated secret agent."
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[[folder:Live Action TV]]
* This seems to be a registered trademark of [[{{Series/House}} Dr. James Wilson]].
* Western example: Sheriff Jack Carter, from ''{{Eureka}}''.
* The Third and Tenth Doctors in ''Series/DoctorWho''.
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[[folder:Video Games]]
* In ''VisualNovel/AceAttorney'', Phoenix Wright and Apollo Justice ofen do this in the court scenes if they make a mistake. They also do it if they are unsure about something; like, for example, when bringing up a piece of evidence without knowing exactly what's going on, they'll do this while explaining their usually shaky logic.
** Dick Gumshoe does this pretty often too.
** Phoenix Wright does this as his victory pose in ''UltimateMarvelVsCapcom3''.
* Commander Shepard of ''Franchise/MassEffect'' has a tendency to do this when modestly acknowledging his/her deeds when admired. Other characters occasionally do it as well.
* {{Spider-Man}} does this in the ''MarvelVsCapcom'' series and spiritual predecessors.
* ''{{Ever17}}'': Kuranari Takeshi's right hand is rarely (if ever) seen. It seems to be permanently fused with the back of his head.
* Sora of ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' does this a lot -- often around Kairi or Naminé but basically whenever he's thinking about anything. Also, when Goofy scolds him for getting a little too aggressive, his apology involves this gesture.
* In ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind'', this was an idle animation that every NPC would eventually play if you waited long enough. (Considering the [[GreyAndGreyMorality context]], this was suprisingly appropriate.)
* CrisisCore: Zack does this frequently enough for it to be an identifying mannerism. Cloud of FinalFantasyVII probably picked it up from him. Along with everything else.
* In ''KidIcarusUprising'', Pit, [[spoiler: Hades, and Viridi]] are all guilty of this.
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[[folder:Webcomics]]
* Tarvek makes a frequent habit of this in ''Webcomic/GirlGenius''; Gil does this occasionally as well.
* Used plenty of times in {{Suppression}} mostly by Cerene and Kirk.
* Lavender in ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'' when a tongue-slip [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-01-12 reveals]] [[SubordinateExcuse how she feels about her boss]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* Various characters in ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender''.
* Disney heroes, most notably Aladdin and Hercules, tend to do this when confronted with attractive and aggressive women. The Beast does it when he's ashamed of himself or frustrated
* ''KappaMikey'', naturally, in a parody of anime. Guano, Lily and Mitsuki do this on occasion, but the real offender is Gonard!
* Jérémie from ''CodeLyoko'' pulled this on a couple of occasions.
* Hank Hill from ''KingOfTheHill'' does this all the time. It usually happens when Hank has to try to express emotions, which is very difficult for him.
** It got so common that there was eventually an executive order for him not to do it anymore.
[[/folder]]

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