The × that means "times" — not the letter x — plus the dot and X-mark alternatives it's routinely confused with. Click any symbol to copy it instantly.
The multiplication sign (×, Unicode U+00D7) is the dedicated "times" operator used in arithmetic and algebra — 6 × 7, not 6x7. It looks close enough to the Latin letter x that most people type a lowercase x instead, which is why × has its own confusable-neighbors story worth sorting out.
The correct Unicode multiplication sign, distinct from the letter x.
These get substituted for × constantly — each one means something different or renders differently.
× was introduced by English mathematician William Oughtred in his 1631 work Clavis Mathematicae ("The Key to Mathematics"), where he used a diagonal cross — a St Andrew's cross shape — to mark multiplication distinctly from addition's +. It was a deliberate choice: Oughtred wanted a symbol that couldn't be confused with a letter, a problem earlier notations hadn't solved.
That original goal is exactly what gets undone today. Because × sits outside Basic Latin, in the Latin-1 Supplement block, most keyboards have no key for it, so people substitute the lowercase letter x instead — the very ambiguity Oughtred's symbol was invented to avoid. Gottfried Leibniz raised the same objection in the 1690s and pushed the raised dot (⋅) as an alternative once algebra started mixing operators with variables named x — which is why the dot operator remains the preferred "times" symbol in algebraic notation today.
| Platform / Tool | Method |
|---|---|
| Windows (Alt code) | Alt+0215 on the numeric keypad |
| Word / Windows (Unicode input) | Type 00D7, then press Alt+X |
| Mac | Option+Shift+X on most layouts, or Character Viewer (Cmd+Ctrl+Space) |
| HTML | × or × |
CSS content | content: "\00D7" |
| LaTeX (math mode) | \times |
No. × (U+00D7, MULTIPLICATION SIGN) is a dedicated math operator; x/X are Latin letters (U+0078/U+0058). They just look alike — using the letter in place of × is common but not technically correct, and some equation parsers and search tools treat them differently.
Windows: hold Alt and type 0215 on the numeric keypad. Mac: Option+Shift+X on most layouts, or use the Character Viewer. Everywhere else, copy it from this page.
Both mean "times." × is more common in arithmetic and in English-language schooling; the raised dot ⋅ is preferred in algebra once variables are involved, since a × next to a letter like x can be misread as another variable. Continental European textbooks lean toward the dot for this exact reason.
Yes — × is plain Latin-1 Supplement text and displays normally on Instagram, Discord, TikTok, WhatsApp, and console gamertags, with no platform restrictions.
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