ESL Lesson: Introduction to Symbols

This blog entry is all about symbols. What are symbols? Symbols are things that represent, stand for or show other things. They can be found in writing, keyboards, everyday objects or as part of signs. Signs are messages using words and/or symbols to tell an important message to people. They are found on objects, along roads, and in buildings.

Let’s learn about some symbols in writing that can be found on the keyboard by pressing control or alt followed by one of the numbers one through seven.

@

This is the at symbol. It stands for and means the word “at.” It is frequently used for email addresses. Email addresses are written as kingstonuniversityusa@gmail.com , username@website.org , or username@website.net.

#

This is the number symbol. It stands for the word “number” or for numbering. For instance, “Teamwork is our number one value,” can be written as “Teamwork is our #1 value.”

$

This is the dollar symbol. It stands for either the dollar or the idea of money. For instance, “This hat costs ten dollars,” can be written as “This hat costs $10.”

%

This is the percentage symbol. This symbol stands for percentage, which is a number expressed as a fraction of the number 100. This symbol is often used in business, finance, retail, and culinary endeavors.

^

This is a caret. The caret is used in mathematics and finance to represent exponential functions.

&

This is an ampersand. It is sometimes called the “and symbol.” It is used to write the word “and” in a short way.


The following symbols are a bit more difficult to produce in a word document when typing. For Mac software or Apple products, you can use the Mac OS character palette, which is available in many programs by selecting Special Characters from the Edit Menu, or from the Input Menu (flag) icon on the menu bar. In Microsoft Office and many similar programs, there is often also an Insert menu with an Insert Symbol or Symbol command that brings up a graphical palette of symbols to insert, including the degree symbol.

∞

This is the infinity symbol. It is used for the idea of infinity, which is often treated as or acts as a number in mathematical equations.

Π

This is the pi symbol. Pi is a constant ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter. It is most often used in mathematics, science and engineering.

¢

This is the cent sign. It is used to represent cents in countries' whose currencies or money can be divided by 100. An example of this sign in action is "This drink costs 79 cents," expressed as "This drink costs 79¢."

€

This is the Euro symbol. It is used in much of Europe and around the world as a symbol for money expressed in the Euro currency system.

£

This is the pound symbol. The pound is a currency in the United Kingdom.

¥

This is the Yen symbol. The Yen is the currency of Japan.

°

This is the degree symbol. It is used in science and everyday life to stand for degrees in regard to temperature. An example of the degree symbol in use is, "It is cold today with the temperature of 4° C."

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