What is this symbol * called in English?

what is this symbol called in english: The asterisk

Understanding what is this symbol called in english helps you communicate more clearly in written texts and professional settings.
Misunderstanding common punctuation marks creates confusion in documents and programming environments. Learning the proper terminology improves your overall digital literacy and ensures your messages remain perfectly clear to international readers.

What is this symbol called in English?

So you are wondering what is this symbol called in english? Formally, the symbol is called an asterisk. However, depending on your context - like if you are talking to a child or a computer programmer - it is commonly referred to as a star or a splat.

But there is one counterintuitive detail about how this symbol works in digital security that most people overlook - I will explain it in the password section below.

In everyday writing, the asterisk symbol name is widely recognized as a way to point readers to a footnote. (You have probably seen it at the bottom of a contract). In reality, out of the 16 standard punctuation marks in English grammar, this little star is arguably the most versatile. You will find it hiding bad words, acting as a wildcard in computer searches, and multiplying numbers in code.

Formal vs. Casual: Asterisk, Star, and Splat

If you ask a linguist what this symbol is called in English, they will always say asterisk. The word comes from Late Latin asteriscus and Greek asteriskos, literally meaning little star. That makes perfect sense. Rarely do you see a punctuation mark with so many distinct identities.

I have never seen anyone use the formal name when reading a phone number aloud. People just say star. It is faster. It is easier to pronounce. The star symbol name took over completely in casual conversation.

Then you have the tech world. In the 1990s, programmers started calling it a splat because it looks like a squashed bug on early computer screens. Let us be honest - and this surprises many beginners - programmers love naming things weirdly. They needed a single-syllable word for fast typing.

Speaking of tech, the symbol holds the ASCII value of 42. Some science fiction fans love pointing out this coincidence with The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, where 42 is the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything. The asterisk essentially acts as a wildcard representing everything in code. Pretty neat connection.

This next part surprises most people when evaluating digital safety.

How the Symbol Operates in Passwords and Coding

Remember that security detail I mentioned earlier? Here is what actually happens with passwords. When creating an account, systems display asterisks to hide your screen input from shoulder-surfers.

We assume people use these symbols constantly for better security. Dead wrong. Without strict system requirements forcing the issue, only about 5% of users naturally include special characters like asterisk symbol name in their passwords. Most stick to lowercase letters and numbers. This makes brute-force attacks significantly easier.

In programming, the splat symbol meaning shifts entirely. Over 95% of modern programming languages - including Python, Java, and C++ - use the asterisk as the standard multiplication operator instead of the traditional letter x or a dot.

When I first started coding, I kept typing the letter x for multiplication. My scripts crashed immediately. It took me two days of pulling my hair out to realize that the compiler was reading x as a variable letter, not a math command. I had to go back and replace hundreds of letters with asterisks. Lesson learned.

The Magic of Wildcards in Computer Searches

Beyond simple multiplication, the asterisk serves as the ultimate search tool for power users. This is called a wildcard search.

Imagine you are looking for a document, but you only remember it starts with fin and ends with report. You can literally type finreport into your computer search bar. The asterisk tells the computer to fill in the blanks with any characters it finds. It acts as a universal placeholder.

Most beginners never use this feature. They scroll through hundreds of files manually. Once you master the wildcard, your productivity skyrockets. It is a game changer.

Data administrators use this constantly. When querying massive databases, using wildcard syntax speeds up the retrieval process dramatically (though it consumes more processing power if used carelessly at the very beginning of a search string). Seldom does a single symbol carry so much weight across different professions.

Typography and Spacing Rules

Many writers get confused about how to format this symbol. Do you put a space before it? What about after?

The rule is simple. When pointing to a footnote, the asterisk attaches directly to the preceding word without a space. At the bottom of the page, it also attaches directly to the first word of the note. No spaces needed.

However, when creating bulleted lists in formatting languages like Markdown, you always put a single space after the star. Formatting rules are rigid. Break them, and your text renders completely broken.

Modern Communication: Censorship and Texting

Outside of coding and formal publishing, the asterisk has found a massive second life in digital communication. Specifically, it has become the internet standard for censorship.

If you want to swear on a public forum without triggering automated content filters, you replace the vowels with stars. The human brain perfectly fills in the gaps, but the computer algorithm often gives it a pass. It is a clever workaround.

Beyond censorship, texters use asterisks to denote physical actions in text-based chats. Typing sighs or rolls eyes adds physical context to a medium that lacks body language. It brings emotional depth to flat text.

I once texted a colleague a quick correction with an asterisk, and they thought I was swearing at them because of the censorship association. Context is absolutely everything. Know your audience.

Understanding Contexts: Asterisk vs. Star vs. Splat

The name you choose completely changes based on who you are talking to. Here is how the naming convention breaks down across different fields.

Asterisk (Formal or Publishing)

• Connecting text to a footnote or correcting typos in chat
• Writers, editors, and academics
• Highly professional and correct

Star (Casual or Telephony)

• Reading phone keypads or passwords aloud
• General public and children
• Conversational and friendly

Splat (Programming and Tech)

• Multiplication, wildcard searches, or pointer dereferencing
• Software engineers and IT professionals
• Technical jargon and fast-paced communication

A Wildcard Search Nightmare

David, a junior database administrator at a retail company in London, was tasked with finding all employee files starting with the letter M in a legacy system. He figured it would take five minutes.

He ran a script using the standard SQL percent sign wildcard. The system threw syntax errors continuously. He spent four hours rewriting the query, convinced his logic was flawed. The frustration was real - his manager was waiting for the report.

The breakthrough came when a senior developer noticed the legacy command-line interface. It did not use SQL standards. David had to use the splat () symbol for wildcard searches instead of the percent sign.

Once he swapped the symbol, the query executed in 12 seconds. He retrieved all 145 files instantly. He learned the hard way that punctuation rules change drastically depending on the specific environment you are working in.