Above the passport control desks at Johannesburg's OR Tambo Airport are prominent signs that say: "No cellphones beyond this point." Being a pedant, and having some time to shuffle a pack of thoughts while waiting for my turn to be stamped, I began wondering about this. The sign did not specify "no Galaxy 7 phones", it said "NO cellphones". Why, then, were none of the people ahead of me handing over their phones to the officials in booths before being allowed to proceed to the misnamed land of duty-free?story_article_left1Did they already know about this rule? Were they all so obedient that they had left their mobile devices at home rather than have them confiscated?If not, surely it would save time and unnecessary delays (as opposed to necessary delays, which build patience and kindness) if someone came along the line with a sack into which travellers could drop their phones before reaching the booth and going through the whole rigmarole there?Of course (before anyone fires off an e-mail pointing out my failure to grasp a simple point), the sign does not mean that no cellphones are physically permitted beyond passport control. It means: "Don't use your phone until clear of the stamping area."Not very clear though, is it? The same goes for many signs, particularly those at airports, where one is not sure how vigilant one is expected to be in following the given instruction.I try to be a law-abiding citizen. I always put away my sword when driving on sections of the road where the signs read: "No fencing." Other orders can be more difficult to follow.For instance, at a certain airport in France there seems to be a rule that you must closely embrace the person dropping you off before you will be allowed to board the plane. Coach and bus drivers must dread airport stops.Let me explain. Most airports have a drop-off area where drivers may stop to off-load passengers but may not park. At most airports, the signs pointing to these areas say "drop and go" or "quick drop off" or something along those lines.story_article_right2I can't vouch for signs in all languages but I'm assuming every tongue has its way of saying: "Kick your passenger out without dilly-dallying and vamoose pronto so someone else can do the same."In France, birthplace of the word "bureaucracy", you would expect the drop-off zone to be situated at least 8km from the departure gates and be inaccessible to any driver who does not have a permit - a document for which you can apply between the hours of two and three on a Wednesday if your car is blue. (See clause 768 of the fine print if you were born in Clermont-Ferrand and drive a yellow Renault.Tractors are exempt and may park anywhere, at any time, without incurring penalties, but may not carry passengers.) This is how you would expect things to be at airports in France. But at Nice airport on the French Riviera there has been a small revolution. Instead of a surly overhead instruction to "drop and go", the signs pointing to the passenger-ejection site are painted with the happy words: "kiss and fly".Can it be that the French place more value on the human heart than on petty obstructionism? Can all those centuries of ironclad officialdom be waved away with a mere brush of the lips?Well, no, not really. Follow the overhead signs to the "kiss and fly" zone and you will find many more signs containing the strict instruction: "No kiss may last longer than three minutes."E-mail your observations on words and language to Sue de Groot on degroots@sundaytimes.co.za or follow her on Twitter @deGrootS1..