Math Symbols: Copy and Paste with Names and Meanings

Copy any math symbol with one click below, from ± × ÷ ≠ to √ ∞ π ∑ and ∫. Further down, every symbol is listed with its name, what it means and a short example, grouped by topic.

Basic math symbols

Symbol	Name	Meaning
+	Plus sign	Addition: 2 + 3 = 5
−	Minus sign	Subtraction: 5 − 2 = 3
×	Multiplication sign	Times: 4 × 3 = 12
÷	Division sign	Divided by: 12 ÷ 4 = 3
⋅	Dot operator	Also times, common in algebra: 3 ⋅ 4 = 12
=	Equals sign	Same value: 2 + 2 = 4
±	Plus-minus	Plus or minus: x = ±2 means 2 or −2
%	Percent	Per hundred: 50% = 0.5
‰	Per mille	Per thousand: 5‰ = 0.005

The true minus sign − is a little longer than the hyphen – on your keyboard and lines up with the plus sign. Use it when the text should look like printed math.

Comparison symbols

Symbol	Name	Meaning
≠	Not equal to	3 ≠ 4
≈	Almost equal to	Close but not exact: π ≈ 3.14
≡	Identical to	Always equal, or congruent in modular math: 7 ≡ 2 (mod 5)
< >	Less than, greater than	2 < 5 and 5 > 2
≤ ≥	Less / greater than or equal to	x ≥ 18 means 18 or more
≪ ≫	Much less / much greater than	0.001 ≪ 1000
∝	Proportional to	y ∝ x means y grows at the same rate as x

Algebra and number symbols

Symbol	Name	Meaning
√	Square root	√9 = 3
∛	Cube root	∛27 = 3
² ³	Squared, cubed	3² = 9 and 2³ = 8
∞	Infinity	Without end: x → ∞
π	Pi	Circle ratio: π ≈ 3.14159
∑	Summation	Add a series: ∑ of 1, 2 and 3 = 6
∏	Product	Multiply a series: ∏ of 1, 2 and 3 = 6
½	One half	½ = 0.5

Geometry symbols

Symbol	Name	Meaning
°	Degree	A right angle is 90°
∠	Angle	∠ABC is the angle at point B
△	Triangle	△ABC is the triangle with corners A, B and C
⊥	Perpendicular	AB ⊥ CD means the lines meet at 90°
∥	Parallel	AB ∥ CD means the lines never meet
≅	Congruent	△ABC ≅ △DEF means same shape and size
∼	Similar	△ABC ∼ △DEF means same shape, maybe a different size
′ ″	Prime, double prime	Feet and inches: 5′ 10″

Set symbols

Symbol	Name	Meaning
∈	Element of	3 ∈ ℕ means 3 is a natural number
∉	Not an element of	½ ∉ ℤ means one half is not an integer
⊂ ⊆	Subset of	A ⊆ B means every item of A is also in B
∪	Union	A ∪ B is everything in A or B
∩	Intersection	A ∩ B is what A and B share
∅	Empty set	A set with nothing in it
ℕ ℤ ℚ ℝ ℂ	Number sets	Natural, integer, rational, real and complex numbers

Logic symbols

Symbol	Name	Meaning
∀	For all	∀x means “for every x”
∃	There exists	∃x means “there is at least one x”
¬	Not	¬p means “p is false”
∧ ∨	And, or	p ∧ q is true when both are true, p ∨ q when at least one is
⇒	Implies	p ⇒ q means “if p, then q”
⇔	If and only if	p ⇔ q means both imply each other
∴ ∵	Therefore, because	Used in proofs: ∴ x = 4

Calculus symbols

Symbol	Name	Meaning
∫	Integral	Area under a curve: ∫ x dx
∂	Partial derivative	∂f/∂x is how f changes with x alone
∇	Nabla (del)	∇f is the gradient of f
Δ	Delta	Change in: Δt is change in time
′	Prime	f′(x) is the derivative of f

How to type math symbols

Windows Alt codes

A few math symbols have Alt codes. Hold Alt and type the number on the number pad: ± is Alt + 0177, × is Alt + 0215, ÷ is Alt + 0247, √ is Alt + 251, ∞ is Alt + 236, ≈ is Alt + 247, ≤ is Alt + 243 and ≥ is Alt + 242. Alt + 228 gives Σ, the Greek letter, which looks like the sum sign ∑. See all of them in our Alt Code Finder.

Microsoft Word: type the name

Press Alt + = to start an equation and type a backslash name, then press Space. For example \pm gives ±, \neq gives ≠, \le gives ≤, \infty gives ∞, \sum gives ∑ and \int gives ∫. The same names work in LaTeX.

Tip: these names can work in normal text too. Go to File > Options > Proofing > AutoCorrect Options, open the Math AutoCorrect tab and tick “Use Math AutoCorrect rules outside of math regions”.

Mac

Symbol	Mac shortcut
≠	Option + =
≈	Option + X
≤ ≥	Option + , and Option + .
±	Option + Shift + =
÷	Option + /
√	Option + V
∞	Option + 5
π	Option + P
∑	Option + W
∫	Option + B
∂	Option + D
°	Option + Shift + 8

Google Docs

Go to Insert > Equation, then type a backslash name like \pi or \infty and press Space. For a single symbol in normal text, use Insert > Special characters and search by name.

Frequently asked questions

Are these real math symbols or look-alikes?

They are the real Unicode math characters, the same ones used by Word, LaTeX and math websites. For example − here is the true minus sign (U+2212), not a hyphen.

What is the difference between ∑ and Σ?

∑ (U+2211) is the summation sign used in math. Σ (U+03A3) is the Greek capital letter sigma. They look almost the same, but screen readers and search engines treat them differently, so use ∑ for sums.

Which symbol means “therefore”?

∴ means therefore and ∵ means because. Both are in the tool above, under logic.

Can I paste math symbols into Excel or Google Sheets?

Yes, as text. Excel will not calculate with them, though. For real math in a formula use the keyboard signs, like * for times and / for divide.

Sources: the Unicode Mathematical Operators chart and Microsoft Word’s Math AutoCorrect list. Written by Muhammad Ilyas, updated October 2026.