Basic math symbols
| Symbol | Symbol Name | Meaning/Definition | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| \( = \) | equals sign | equality | \( 5 = 2+3 \) |
| \( ≠ \) | not equal sign | inequality | \( 5 ≠ 4 \) |
| \( ≈ \) | approximately equal | approximation | \( \sin (0.01) ≈ 0.01 \) |
| \( > \) | strict inequality | greater than | \( 5 > 4 \) |
| \( < \) | strict inequality | less than | \( 4 < 5 \) |
| \( ≥ \) | inequality | greater than or equal to | \( 5 ≥ 4 \) |
| \( ≤ \) | inequality | less than or equal to | \( 4 ≤ 5 \) |
| \( ( \ ) \) | parentheses | calculate expression inside first | \( 2 × (3+5) = 16 \) |
| \( [ \ ] \) | brackets | calculate expression inside first | \( [(1+2)×(1+5)] = 18 \) |
| \( + \) | plus sign | addition | \( 1 + 1 = 2 \) |
| \( − \) | minus sign | subtraction | \( 2 − 1 = 1 \) |
| \( ± \) | plus - minus | both plus and minus operations | \( 3 ± 5 = 8 \ \text{or} \ -2 \) |
| \( \mp \) | minus - plus | both minus and plus operations | \( 3 \mp 5 = -2 \ \text{or} \ 8 \) |
| \( * \) | asterisk | multiplication | \( 2 * 3 = 6 \) |
| \( × \) | times sign | multiplication | \( 2 × 3 = 6 \) |
| \( \cdot \) | multiplication dot | multiplication | \( 2 \cdot 3 = 6 \) |
| \( ÷ \) | division sign / obelus | division | \( 6 ÷ 2 = 3 \) |
| \( / \) | division slash | division | \( 6 / 2 = 3 \) |
| \( — \) | horizontal line | division / fraction | \( \frac 62 = 3 \) |
| \( \text{mod} \) | modulo | remainder calculation | \( 7 \mod 2 = 1 \) |
| \( . \) | period | decimal point, decimal separator | \( 2.56 = 2+56/100 \) |
| \( a^b \) | power | exponent | \( 2^3 = 8 \) |
| \( a^\wedge b \) | caret | exponent | \( 2^\wedge 3 = 8 \) |
| \( \sqrt a \) | square root | \( \sqrt a \cdot \sqrt a =a \) | \( \sqrt 9 = \pm 3 \) |
| \( \sqrt [3]{a} \) | cube root | \( \sqrt [3]{a}\cdot \sqrt [3]{a}\cdot \sqrt [3]{a} \) | \( \sqrt [3]{8} = 2 \) |
| \( \sqrt [4]{a} \) | fourth root | \( \sqrt [4]{a}\cdot \sqrt [4]{a}\cdot \sqrt [4]{a}\cdot \sqrt [4]{a} \) | \( \sqrt [4]{16} =\pm 2 \) |
| \( \sqrt [n]{a} \) | n-th root (radical) | \( for n=3, \sqrt [n]{8} = 2 \) | |
| \( % \) | percent | 1% = 1/100 | \( 10% × 30 = 3 \) |
| \( ‰ \) | per-mille | 1‰ = 1/1000 = 0.1% | \( 10‰ × 30 = 0.3 \) |
| \( ppm \) | per-million | 1ppm = 1/1000000 | \( 10ppm × 30 = 0.0003 \) |
| \( ppb \) | per-billion | 1ppb = 1/1000000000 | \( 10ppb × 30 = 3×10-7 \) |
| \( ppt \) | per-trillion | 1ppt = 10-12 | \( 10ppt × 30 = 3×10^{-10} \) |
