by This page contains an overview of commonly used special characters. The characters appear in different categories ordered by reasonable topics.
The tables show the ASCII number (if applicable) in decimal, the UNICODE number in hexadecimal, the HTML Code as entity or UNICODE reference and a possible call in LaTex code.
Additionally the tables provide a short description of the symbols. The purpose of this description is to make searching more efficient. You may use Ctrl+F in your web browser to search for a symbol on this page.
Keep in mind, that this is a hand made selection of symbols and characters. If you think something is missing do not hesitate to post a comment. We are happy to keep this page up to date.
Also take a look at the ASCII Table. Hint
You can type special characters on you keyboard easily. Use ALT+ on your keyboard to print a symbol. Use the Numpad to type in the number and type a decimal number. Keep pressing ALT-key while typing in the number and release ALT-key when you finished typing the number.
Mathematics
Special characters that are used in mathematics. Operators, calculations and identifiers.
| Character | Name | ASCII (Dec) | Unicode (Hex) | HTML | Latex | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ∞ | Infinity | – | U+221E | ∞ &x221E; | \infty | Uncountable, Capsized 8 Eight |
| √ | Square Root | – | U+221A | √ &x221A; | \sqrt{ … } | Square Root, radical |
| ∑ | Sum | – | U+2211 | ∑ &x2211; | \sum | Capital Sigma for summing up |
| ∂ | Partial Differential | – | U+2202 | ∂ &x2202; | \partial | upside down six 6, partial derivation deduction for example second paramter y |
| ∀ | Universal Quantifier | – | U+2200 | ∀ &x2200; | \forall | For all. Upside down A. |
| ∃ | Existential Quantifier | – | U+2203 | ∃ &x2203; | \exists | It exists. Inversed E |
| ∫ | Integral | – | U+222B | ∫ &x222B; | \int | Antiderivative, large S |
| ‰ | Per Mille | – | U+2030 | ‰ &x2030; | \permil or \textperthousand | Per thousand, known for alcohol level |
| ½ | Fraction one half | – | U+00BD | ½ &x00BD; | \textonehalf or fractions in general: \frac{1}{2} | 1 One divided by 2 two. Decimal fraction symbol. |
| ¼ | Fraction one quarter | – | U+00BC | ¼ &x00BC; | \textonequarter or fractions in general: \frac{1}{4} | 1 One divided by 4 four as a decimal fraction. |
| ¾ | Fraction Three Quarter | – | U+00BE | ¾ &x00BE; | \textthreequarters or fractions in general: \frac{3}{4} | 3 Three divided by 4 four in a decimal fraction. |
Operators
Logical and algebraic operators
| Character | Name | ASCII (Dec) | Unicode (Hex) | HTML | Latex | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| < | lower than | 60 | U+003C | < &x003C; | \textless or < in mathmode | Symbol for marking smaller than or lower than. Capsized v opening to the right. |
| > | greater than | 63 | U+003E | > &x003E; | \textgreater or > in mathmode | Symbol for showin greater than or larger than. Capsized v opening to the left. |
| ≤ | less than or equal | – | U+2264 | ≤ &x2264; | \leq | Special Character for less than or equal or lower than or equal. |
| ≥ | greater than or equal | – | U+2265 | ≥ &x2265; | \geq | Symbol for greater than or equal. |
| ≠ | not equal | – | U+2260 | ≠ &x2260; | \neq | non-equal, nonequality, commonly known as != |
| ≈ | almost equal | – | U+2248 | ≈ &x2248; | \approx | Asymptotic, Approximal, Almost equal, two waves |
| ≡ | Identity, Identical | – | U+2261 | ≡ &x2261; | \equiv | Equivalent, strong Equals, three stripes |
| & | Ampersand | 38 | U+0026 | & &x0026; | \& or \with | also known for: logical and bitwise and in many programming languages |
| ± | Plusminus | – | U+00B1 | ± &x00B1; | \pm | Plus and Minus in one Character written in vertical order. |
Phyiscs
Special Characters used in Physics.
| Character | Name | ASCII (Dec) | Unicode (Hex) | HTML | Latex | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ≈ | almost equal | – | U+2248 | ≈ &x2248; | \approx | Asymptotic, Approximal, Almost equal, two waves |
| λ | Lambda | – | U+039B | λ &x039B; | \lambda | Greek character lambda. Used for wavelength in physics. |
| ω | lowercase omega | – | U+03C9 | ω &x03C9; | \omega or \textomega | lower case Greek letter omega. Used for radial frequency, angular frequency, circuit frequency, circular frequency in physics. |
| Ω | Capital Omega | – | U+937 | Ω &x937; | \ohm or \Omega or \textscomega or \Upomega | Known for Ohm resistance in Physics. Greek letter. |
Currencies
Special Characters from the category currency, trade, commerce and money
| Character | Name | ASCII (Dec) | Unicode (Hex) | HTML | Latex | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| € | Euro | – | U+20AC | € &x20AC; | \euro | Currency symbol for money represented as Euro |
| $ | Dollar | 36 | U+0024 | $ &x0024; | \$ | Currency symbol for money represented as Dollar |
| £ | Pound | – | U+00A3 | £ &x00A3; | \pounds | Currency British Great Britain money |
| ¢ | Cent | – | U+00A2 | ¢ &x00A2; | \cent or \textcent or \textcentoldstyle | Dollar-Cent Character |
| ¥ | Yen | – | U+00A5 | ¥ &x00A5; | \textyen | Japanese currency Yen, Money |
Punctuation marks
Special punctuation marks that are not easy to find on a keyboard
| Character | Name | ASCII (Dec) | Unicode (Hex) | HTML | Latex | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ¿ | Inversed Question Mark | – | U+00BF | ¿ &x00BF; | \textquestiondown | Spanish question mark, reversed upside down inverted |
| ‹ | single guillemet left | – | U+2039 | ‹ &x2039; | \guilsinglleft | opening French quotation mark |
| › | single guillemet right | – | U+203A | › &x203A; | \guilsinglright | closing French quotation mark right closing |
| « | double guillemets left | – | U+00AB | « &x00AB; | \guillemotleft | Double French quotation mark opening |
| » | double guillemets right | – | U+00BB | » &x00BB; | \guillemotright | Double French quotation mark closing |
| … | Three dots | – | U+2026 | &8230; &x2026; | \dotsb, \dotsc, \dotsi | 3 Three small dots, horizontal ellipsis |
Set Theory
Special Characters used in the Set Theory
| Character | Name | ASCII (Dec) | Unicode (Hex) | HTML | Latex | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ∪ | Union | – | U+222A | ∪ &x222A; | \cup | Union in the set theory, looks like a cup |
| ∩ | Section | – | U+2229 | ∩ &x2229; | \cap | Intersection between to sets. Looks like a cap. |
| ⊂ | (Real) Subset | – | U+2282 | ⊂ &x2282; | \subset | Capsized U open to the right |
| ⊃ | (Real) Subset (left) | – | U+2283 | ⊃ &x2283; | \supset | Capsized U open to the left |
| ∈ | Is element | – | U+2208 | ∈ &x2208; | \in | A is element of B where A is element and B is a set. Looks like a small e or Euro with only one horizontal bar. |
| ∉ | not element of | – | U+2209 | ∉ &x2209; | \notin | Element A is not in B, B is a set. small e |
| ∀ | Universal Quantifier | – | U+2200 | ∀ &x2200; | \forall | For all. Upside down A. |
| ∃ | Existential Quantifier | – | U+2203 | ∃ &x2203; | \exists | It exists. Inversed E |
| ∋ | Inversed is element | – | U+220B | ∋ &x220B; | \ni | A is Element of B, B is set. small inversed e |
Links
This article is also available in German on Computer-Masters.de
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