backslash
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backslash
- /ˈbækˌslæʃ/
Rhymes with -æʃ
Where it comes from
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.
noun backslashes · back slash
-
The punctuation mark \ (a left-leaning diagonal line). (Common uses include (1) use as a delimiter in filepaths and (2) use as an escape character to mark literals.)
Similar: backward slash, reverse solidus, slosh, whack
- The punctuation mark /; a slash, forward slash. […] I was trying to find a web-site for which I had been given the following address: http://www.isop.ucla.edu/pacrim/pubs/korjournal.htm. […] I began to work backwards, removing first the last part of the address following the last backslash (/korjournal.htm).
verb backslashes · backslashing · backslashed · back slash
- To escape (a metacharacter) by prepending a backslash that serves as an escape character, thereby forming an escape sequence.
Translations
Every language
noun punctuation mark
| Español | barra inversa, barra oblicua inversa, barra invertida, barra revertida, contrabarra |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 역슬래시 yeokseullaesi, 역사선 yeoksaseon |
| 日本語 | バックスラッシュ bakkusurasshu, 逆斜線 gyakushasen |
| 中文 | 反斜線 /反斜线 fǎnxiéxiàn, 反斜槓 /反斜杠 fǎnxiégàng |
| Português | barra invertida, barra inversa, contrabarra |
| Français | barre oblique inversée, contre-oblique, backslash, antislash |
| Deutsch | Backslash, Rückwärtsschrägstrich |
| Italiano | barra inversa |
| Ελληνικά | αντιπλάγια antiplágia, ανάστροφη κάθετος anástrofi káthetos |
| Română | bară oblică inversă, linie oblică inversă |
| Русский | обра́тная коса́я obrátnaja kosája, обра́тная коса́я черта́ obrátnaja kosája čertá, обра́тный слэш obrátnyj slɛš, бе́кслэ́ш békslɛ́š |
| العربية | مَائِلَة مُعَاكِسَة māʔila muʕākisa |
Talk about this word "backslash." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/backslash. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. backslash. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/backslash "backslash." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/backslash.Cite this
@misc{backslash_2026,
title = {backslash},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/backslash},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
