# How do you make ampersands? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 17, 2003, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691 "2003-08-17T01:34:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Freiheit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e8c25b/32.png) [@Freiheit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freiheit)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/1 "2003-08-17T01:34:27Z")
Another handwriting thread… How do you make ampersands? The methods are as varied as they are beautiful. The one over my keyboard 7 is almost an 8 into an x. Crossed E’s. Plus signs, I guess. I can’t think of any others, but I know there’s a lot. How do you make yours? ---
**Author:** ![Stage\_Manager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stage_manager/32/7267_2.png) [@Stage\_Manager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stage_Manager)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/2 "2003-08-17T01:55:49Z")
I make mine sorta like this: ```auto | | | | | | | --------+-------- | / | / | / | / | / | / | / |/ ``` Kinda. ---
**Author:** ![Nvme77](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c89c15/32.png) [@Nvme77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nvme77)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/3 "2003-08-17T01:55:57Z")
Like a treble clef ---
**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/4 "2003-08-17T02:06:51Z")
Backwards 3 with a vertical line down the middle. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/5 "2003-08-17T02:33:51Z")
I don’t even bother. I just spell out the word “and”. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/6 "2003-08-17T04:21:17Z")
backwards 3 but with an interrupted line. Vertical dash at the top and bottom, rather than a line that goes all the way down. ---
**Author:** ![Mudshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Mudshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mudshark)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/7 "2003-08-17T07:32:25Z")
I always write out the word “and”. ---
**Author:** ![Orange\_Skinner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3be4f8/32.png) [@Orange\_Skinner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orange_Skinner)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/8 "2003-08-17T07:39:47Z")
If I’m going for speed, a curvy version of **Mikie** ’s ampersands, but usually I just write out the word “and.” ---
**Author:** ![TJdude825](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dec6dc/32.png) [@TJdude825](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TJdude825)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/9 "2003-08-17T07:46:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ringo \* > \*\*Backwards 3 with a vertical line down the middle. \*\* Yeah, me too. But only in h&writing, otherwise I just write it out. ---
**Author:** ![that.sound.again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e5b9ba/32.png) [@that.sound.again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/that.sound.again)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/10 "2003-08-17T11:11:05Z")
Starting from bottom right, towards upper left in a straight line, curving into a partial firgure eight and ending up middle right. It looks like the typed version and I have it down so I don’t even have to think about it. ---
**Author:** ![Jenericho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@Jenericho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jenericho)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/11 "2003-08-17T13:38:39Z")
Usually mine are like a backwards three with the bottom loop extended up to the middle and a hottizontal bar added to the top of it (primarily because of trying to keep it recognizable as an e+t combined, which I believe is the origin of the amphersand (latin “et”)), though sometimes I will slip into just using a plus sign. ---
**Author:** ![Shaolinrabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Shaolinrabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shaolinrabbit)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/12 "2003-08-17T14:33:26Z")
I draw a circle on top and a little fish on the bottom, so it basically looks like the one on the keyboard. ---
**Author:** ![acrossthesea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/838e76/32.png) [@acrossthesea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/acrossthesea)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/13 "2003-08-17T14:39:56Z")
Like an E with vertical lines coming out of the top and bottom. I never knew how to write them before I worked at Barnes & Noble, actually. ---
**Author:** ![percypercy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8baadc/32.png) [@percypercy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/percypercy)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/14 "2003-08-17T14:41:17Z")
mine’s a lot like \*\* mikie \*\* does it ---
**Author:** ![acrossthesea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/838e76/32.png) [@acrossthesea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/acrossthesea)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/15 "2003-08-17T14:41:21Z")
Hmm, that requires me to explain that the way I write the letter “E”, it looks like a backwards 3. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/16 "2003-08-17T15:14:50Z")
**acrossthesea** – that’s known as a Greek E – like a capital C with an horizontal line – that’s how I do my capital E’s, too. (And since I do a little tail on my lower case t’s when I’m printing, when I’m going too fast those two can be hard to tell apart). My ampersand is a bacwards 3, with the lower end extended vertically and then a short vertical line (sometimes barely more than a dot) above it as a separate stroke. ---
**Author:** ![Neurotik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/91b2a8/32.png) [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/17 "2003-08-17T16:09:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by OpalCat \* > \*\*backwards 3 but with an interrupted line. Vertical dash at the top and bottom, rather than a line that goes all the way down. \*\* I just write a normal three with an interrupted line. But the three is much smaller than I would normally write it as a number. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/18 "2003-08-17T19:44:07Z")
My ampersands look exactly like a backwards cursive capital S. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2003, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/19 "2003-08-18T01:43:09Z")
I start at the top of the aforementioned backward three, zig back, forth, and back (in other words make the top lobe and half the bottom lobe); then I loop up and back down. ```auto /\ || || || --++--- \||__ __/\_/ \ ``` Yes, I’m weird. I accept this about myself. ---
**Author:** ![Super\_Gnat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@Super\_Gnat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Super_Gnat)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2003, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691/20 "2003-08-18T03:23:53Z")
A small three with a line through it, usually. But I taught myself to write ampersands like the one on a keyboard, so I’ve started doing that more often. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-make-ampersands/195691.md?page=2)