SymbolHub

Interrobang (‽)

The interrobang ‽ is Unicode U+203D, the composite punctuation mark combining a question mark and exclamation point for surprised questions. Press Copy to put it on your clipboard.

Unicode
U+203D
HTML
‽
Word
203D Alt+X

How to type the interrobang (‽)

The quickest way is to press Copy above and paste. To type ‽ yourself, use the method for your device below.

Windows

  1. In Word or Outlook, type 203D and press Alt + X. Alt + X converts the hex code before the cursor into the character, and back again.
  2. Press Win + R, type charmap and press Enter. Tick “Advanced view”, search for Interrobang, then Select and Copy. Character Map is built into every version of Windows.

Mac

  1. Press Control + Command + Space to open the Character Viewer, search for interrobang and double-click it.
  2. With the Unicode Hex Input keyboard enabled (System Settings → Keyboard → Input Sources), hold Option and type 203D.

Linux & ChromeOS

  1. Press Ctrl + Shift + U, type 203d, then press Enter or Space. Works in GTK and IBus apps (GNOME, Firefox, Chrome, LibreOffice) and on ChromeOS.

iPhone & iPad

  1. Copy ‽ from this page, then go to Settings → General → Keyboard → Text Replacement and add it with a shortcut such as ;inte. The shortcut then turns into the symbol as you type, in every app.

Android

  1. Copy ‽ here, then open Gboard settings → Dictionary → Personal dictionary and add it with a shortcut.

Microsoft Word

  1. Type 203D, then press Alt + X.
  2. Insert → Symbol → More Symbols. Set “from” to Unicode (hex), type 203D in “Character code” and click Insert.

Google Docs

  1. Insert → Special characters, then search for “interrobang” or draw it in the box.

Excel & Google Sheets

  1. Enter =UNICHAR(8253) in a cell. It works in Excel 2013 and later and in Google Sheets.

HTML

  1. Write ‽ or ‽ in your HTML.

What does ‽ mean?

The interrobang (‽) is an ingenious non-standard punctuation mark designed to express surprised inquiry, stunned disbelief, or excited interrogation in a single unified glyph. Created in 1962 by American advertising agency head Martin K. Speckter, the glyph superimposes a question mark directly over an exclamation point, giving copywriters an elegant alternative to typing clunky double punctuation like “?!” or “!?”.

While standard Spanish employs the inverted question mark and inverted exclamation mark at the beginning of dramatic sentences, the interrobang offers a modern English alternative for rhetorical questions spoken in astonishment (e.g. “You walked home in that blizzard‽”). Though rare in formal legal briefs, it is celebrated in graphic design and creative prose alongside expressive marks like the ellipsis in punctuation symbols.

Common uses

  • Incredulous rhetorical questions: “You expect me to believe that story‽”
  • Creative fiction and dialogue communicating simultaneous shock and enquiry
  • Graphic branding, typography logos, and editorial design badges

Interrobang codes for HTML, CSS and programming

Every code below produces ‽. Use the HTML entity in web pages, the CSS escape in content, and the escape sequence in source code.

Unicode code pointU+203D
HTML decimal‽
HTML hex‽
CSS contentcontent: "\203D";
JavaScript"\u203D"
Python"\u203D"
Python (by name)"\N{INTERROBANG}"
Java / C#"\u203D"
UTF-8 bytesE2 80 BD
UTF-16203D
URL encoded%E2%80%BD

‽ vs look-alike characters

These characters look similar to ‽ but have a different meaning and code. Pasting the wrong one can break search, sorting and screen readers.

CharNameWhen to use it
Question Mark + Exclamation Mark
U+003F U+0021		Two separate ASCII characters. The ubiquitous informal keyboard substitute for an interrobang.
Inverted Interrobang
U+2E18		Inverted interrobang (U+2E18). The upside-down counterpart intended for opening Spanish sentences.
Inverted Question Mark
U+00BF		Inverted question mark (U+00BF). Standard opening punctuation mark in Spanish interrogation.

Symbols similar to ‽

Click to copy, or open a symbol for its codes. See the full punctuation symbols collection.

‽ character properties

Official Unicode name
INTERROBANG
Also known as
interabang, question exclamation mark, exclarrogative, combined punctuation
Code point
U+203D
Unicode block
General Punctuation (U+2000–U+206F)
General category
Other punctuation (Po)
Added in
Unicode 1.1 (1993)
Plane
Basic Multilingual Plane (0)
Emoji
No, it is a text symbol

Frequently asked questions

Who invented the interrobang?

Martin K. Speckter, an American advertising executive, invented the mark in 1962 to give writers a single character expressing incredulous questions in magazine ads.

What does the name interrobang mean?

The word merges interrogatio (Latin for questioning) with bang, printers’ and proofreaders’ traditional slang for an exclamation point.

How do I type an interrobang on keyboard?

In Microsoft Word, type 203D and press Alt + X. On Linux, press Ctrl + Shift + U, type 203d, and press Enter. In HTML, write ‽ or copy it directly from SymbolHub.

Is there an alt code for the interrobang?

No. ‽ is outside the Windows-1252 and code page 437 character sets, so no Alt + number code produces it. Copy it from this page, type 203D then Alt + X in Word, or find it in Character Map.

How do I type the interrobang on a Mac?

There is no single Option shortcut for ‽ on the US layout. Press Control + Command + Space to open the Character Viewer, search for “interrobang” and double-click it, or copy it from this page.

What is the HTML code for the interrobang?

‽ has no named HTML entity. Use the numeric reference ‽ or ‽, or paste the character directly into a UTF-8 page.

What is the Unicode for the interrobang?

‽ is U+203D, officially named INTERROBANG, in the General Punctuation block. It has been part of Unicode since version 1.1 (1993).