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What's the name of this kind of act? It is commonly seen between friends. (I mean the act between two people, not necessarily 4 people like this one.)

Or can you describe it with a few words?

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If they start doing dance steps, you could call it "a chorus line." – Robusto Mar 9 '11 at 10:49

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This is normally described rather literally as "putting an arm around someone's shoulder".

For example: Mike put his arm around Tracey's shoulder while they were watching the football game.

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A more succinct phrase would be shoulder embrace.

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