SYMBOL
* asterisk
Unicode information
asteriskASTERISKU+002A**\002a\u002APunctuation17.0Meaning of * asterisk
The * character is listed as asterisk in SymbolDex. Its technical Unicode name is ASTERISK. It is a Unicode punctuation mark used to structure text, separate elements or express a specific typographic function.
Common uses
- Punctuation and text composition.
- Editing, quotations and documentation.
- Copy a specific typographic variant that is not available on the keyboard.
How to type * on Windows, Mac and mobile
Windows
The universal method is to use Copy on this page and paste *. On Windows 10/11 you can press Win + . and browse the Symbols section, or open Character Map (charmap) to locate characters supported by your fonts.
Mac
Press Control + Command + Space to open Character Viewer, search for asterisk, then double-click it to insert the character.
Microsoft Word
Type 002A without U+, then immediately press Alt + X. Word converts the code into *. You can also use Insert → Symbol.
Google Docs
Open Insert → Special characters and search by name, or paste * directly. For emoji, you can also use your operating system emoji picker.
iPhone / iPad
iOS does not provide a direct Unicode-code entry method for every symbol. Copy * from SymbolDex or check long-press variants on related keys. For frequent use, create a shortcut under Settings → General → Keyboard → Text Replacement.
Android
Availability varies by Android keyboard. In Gboard, browse the symbols panel and long-press related keys for variants. If it is not available, copy * from SymbolDex and paste it where needed.
Linux
In many Linux apps using GTK/IBus, press Ctrl + Shift + U, type 002a, then confirm with Enter or Space. If your app does not support this method, copy and paste *.
Web and programming codes
Copy the representation you need for HTML, CSS, JavaScript or Python. For emoji sequences, SymbolDex includes every code point in the correct order.
**\002a\u002A\u002A*Usage examples
* — asteriskUnicode: U+002AHTML: *