This study investigates the activity of neurons in the rostral part of the inferior premotor cortex in monkeys, which discharge during goal-directed hand movements such as grasping, holding, and tearing. The research reveals that many of these neurons also become active when the monkey observes specific, meaningful hand movements performed by experimenters. These movements include placing or retrieving food from a table, grasping food from another experimenter's hand, and manipulating objects. The observed movements are closely linked to those executed by the monkey, and often only movements identical to those controlled by a given neuron can activate it. These findings suggest that premotor neurons can retrieve movements not only based on stimulus characteristics but also based on the meaning of the observed actions. The study was conducted on a macaque monkey, with neurons recorded using tungsten microelectrodes. The monkey was trained to retrieve objects of different sizes and shapes from a testing box with a variable delay after stimulus presentation. The experiments involved observing the monkey's responses to various motor actions performed by experimenters, including grasping food, manipulating objects, and gestures with or without emotional content. The neural activity was recorded alongside kinematic data and event time markers. The results show that some neurons discharge vigorously during precision grip but are only weakly activated during whole hand prehension. Other neurons show no specificity for grip type and are inhibited during all types of grasping. The study also found that the spontaneous activity of these neurons is not influenced by object presentation or movement preparation. The findings highlight the role of premotor neurons in encoding the meaning of observed actions, not just the physical characteristics of the stimuli.This study investigates the activity of neurons in the rostral part of the inferior premotor cortex in monkeys, which discharge during goal-directed hand movements such as grasping, holding, and tearing. The research reveals that many of these neurons also become active when the monkey observes specific, meaningful hand movements performed by experimenters. These movements include placing or retrieving food from a table, grasping food from another experimenter's hand, and manipulating objects. The observed movements are closely linked to those executed by the monkey, and often only movements identical to those controlled by a given neuron can activate it. These findings suggest that premotor neurons can retrieve movements not only based on stimulus characteristics but also based on the meaning of the observed actions. The study was conducted on a macaque monkey, with neurons recorded using tungsten microelectrodes. The monkey was trained to retrieve objects of different sizes and shapes from a testing box with a variable delay after stimulus presentation. The experiments involved observing the monkey's responses to various motor actions performed by experimenters, including grasping food, manipulating objects, and gestures with or without emotional content. The neural activity was recorded alongside kinematic data and event time markers. The results show that some neurons discharge vigorously during precision grip but are only weakly activated during whole hand prehension. Other neurons show no specificity for grip type and are inhibited during all types of grasping. The study also found that the spontaneous activity of these neurons is not influenced by object presentation or movement preparation. The findings highlight the role of premotor neurons in encoding the meaning of observed actions, not just the physical characteristics of the stimuli.