backslash
English dictionary entry
Meanings
noun
- The punctuation mark \ (a left-leaning diagonal line).
- The punctuation mark /; a slash, forward slash.
verb
- To escape (a metacharacter) by prepending a backslash that serves as an escape character, thereby forming an escape sequence.
Pronunciation
/ˈbækˌslæʃ/
LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-backslash.wav
Word forms
backslash
backslashes
back slash
backslashing
backslashed
Etymology
From back + slash, because it is a slash “leaning back” against the direction of writing (in writing lines from left to right), in contrast to the more common (forward) slash / (“solidus, oblique, diagonal”). The actual direction of (hand-)writing these marks can be reversed, when writing from left to right, top to baseline: the backslash forwards, the (forward) slash backwards. The naming can be explained as an anthropomorphism, assuming a bar (|) standing on the baseline, facing in the direction of writing, toppling backwards or forwards, respectively. The (new) Unicode name of \ is REVERSE SOLIDUS.
Translations
Arabic: مَائِلَة مُعَاكِسَة
Bulgarian: обра́тна черта́
Chinese Mandarin: 反斜線 /反斜线
Chinese Mandarin: 反斜槓 /反斜杠
Czech: zpětné lomítko
Dutch: backslash
Dutch: terugschrap
Dutch: omgekeerde schuine streep
Dutch: schuine streep naar links
Dutch: schuine streep naar achter
Dutch: terugstreep
Esperanto: deklivo
Estonian: kurakaldkriips
Estonian: längkriips
Estonian: kurakriips
Faroese: bakskák
Finnish: kenoviiva
French: barre oblique inversée
French: contre-oblique
French: backslash
French: antislash
German: Backslash
German: Rückwärtsschrägstrich
Greek: αντιπλάγια
Greek: ανάστροφη κάθετος
Hungarian: fordított törtvonal
Italian: barra inversa
Japanese: バックスラッシュ
Japanese: 逆斜線
Korean: 역슬래시
Korean: 역사선
Macedonian: лева коса црта
Maltese: sinjal djagonali
Norwegian Bokmål: bakstrek
Polish: ukośnik odwrotny
Polish: ukośnik wsteczny
Polish: ukośnik lewy
Portuguese: barra invertida
Portuguese: barra inversa
Portuguese: contrabarra
Romanian: bară oblică inversă
Romanian: linie oblică inversă
Russian: обра́тная коса́я
Russian: обра́тная коса́я черта́
Russian: обра́тный слэш
Russian: бе́кслэ́ш
Slovak: spätná lomka
Slovak: opačná lomka
Slovene: leva poševnica
Spanish: barra inversa
Spanish: barra oblicua inversa
Spanish: barra invertida
Spanish: barra revertida
Spanish: contrabarra
Thai: แบ็กสแลช
Turkish: ters bölü
Ukrainian: обе́рнена скісна́ ри́ска
Ukrainian: бе́кслеш
This entry uses open data from
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