Inverted question and exclamation marks. Inverted question mark

A punctuation mark (!), placed at the end (and in some languages, for example, in Spanish, and at the beginning, inverted) of an exclamation sentence, sometimes an address, etc.... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

exclamation mark- (Astonisher) punctuation mark [period, comma, colon, dash, ellipsis, etc.], expressing exclamation, increased intonation. Placed at the end of a sentence, and in some languages ​​(for example, Spanish) also at the beginning of a sentence in... ... Font terminology

Exclamation mark

Exclamation mark- An exclamation mark is placed at the end of an exclamatory sentence (including the words of a sentence), for example: He loves me, he loves me so much! (Chekhov); Rather, an overcoat and a hat! (A. N. Tolstoy); Right! Right! (Vs. Ivanov). Note 1. In... ... A reference book on spelling and style

A punctuation mark (!), placed at the end (and in some languages, for example, in Spanish, and at the beginning, inverted) of an exclamation sentence, sometimes an address, etc. * * * EXCLAMATION MARK EXCLAMATION MARK, punctuation mark (!), … … Encyclopedic Dictionary

A punctuation mark that is placed: 1) at the end of an exclamation sentence. Oh, if only I could rise to the sky just once! (Bitter); 2) optionally in exclamatory sentences with homogeneous members after each homogeneous member to indicate... ... Dictionary of linguistic terms

A punctuation mark that is placed after expressions containing surprise or invocation... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Ephron

Punctuation mark. It means expressiveness at the end of a sentence (exclamation): How vast these squares are, How echoing and steep the bridges are! or when addressing: Lord! I am careless, your stingy slave (A. Akhmatova. “How vast are these areas...”; “You gave me... ... Literary encyclopedia

See punctuation marks... Great Soviet Encyclopedia

Books

  • Design kit "Happy Holidays!", 11 letters and an exclamation mark, . The set includes 11 letters and an exclamation mark on 2 sheets A 1 and holiday scripts for decorating a classroom, group, foyer, hall of an educational organization for the celebration of Cosmonautics Day and...
  • Exclamation mark. Poems 1911 - 1915 , Tsvetaeva M.I.. ...

With this tool you can flip text(ɯɔʞǝɯ qɯʎнdǝʚǝdǝu) upside down online.

Strictly speaking, the entire word will rotate 180 degrees (˙dǝwîdu). That is, it will be read from right to left. Like in Arabic writing. Inverted letters can only be Cyrillic or Latin. It works as follows. Each regular letter is replaced by another corresponding Unicode character. For example, instead of the letter “F” the symbol “Latin” is substituted lowercase letter db digraph" ȸ. And so the whole text turns upside down. In this regard, the Fraser alphabet helps well, for the Lisu language (that’s the people). It includes many Latin letters placed on the head.

Not only letters, but also punctuation marks can be placed in an interesting position. Here is an inverted question mark: ¿. Spaniards use it at the beginning of a sentence to indicate interrogative intonation, in addition to the usual one at the end. You can do the same with an exclamation mark. But it will not be possible to overturn any Tamil visarga.

This utility can do more than just reverse text.

You can also write the word backwards (.remirp). Using this tool you can depict a boustrophedon. This is a way of writing in which the direction of the words changes in each line. If the first one went from right to left, then the second one went from left to right, the third one went like the first one, and so on. In ancient times, such writing was found among the Germans, with their runes, and the Etruscans. As a rule, they displayed the symbols in mirror images. We have not implemented this function yet.

In Russian grammar it is not customary to use an inverted question mark. However, for the Spanish language this symbol is quite important, as is the inverted exclamation mark. They place it at the beginning of a question sentence and it is an intensifying addition to the question mark traditional in all languages. However, it may not have any connection at all with the main question mark; it all depends on how to place the intonation in Spanish. And a certain number of the first words in a sentence may be in question. In addition, an inverted question mark can be used not only at the end or beginning of a sentence, it can even be placed in the middle of a phrase. Immediately before the question word.
  • A question mark inverted vertically, that is, a hook on the bottom and a dot on top, is used in Church Slavonic and Greek languages.
  • A question mark turned 180° horizontally (the hook is turned in the opposite direction) is used in Arabic.
  • Inverted question mark applied in Windows OS, because in this operating system It is forbidden to use a regular question mark.
It would probably be worth using an inverted question mark in the Russian language, not as a question mark, but, on the contrary, as an affirmative sign, indicating that this is an answer to a previously asked question. However, why complicate the already very complex Russian language?

Many probably wondered and could not find the answer, probably carefully studying their keyboard more than once or twice in search of this symbol, but alas, it was not provided for there. But don’t worry, because the OS developers have provided for writing many various characters, which did not fit on the keyboard.

There is a keyboard shortcut to write an inverted question mark. You should click on the " ALT"and holding it, dial the next digital combination" 0191 ". ¿ Before doing this, change the keyboard layout to English.

Why are inverted question marks and exclamation marks used?

Inverted question marks and exclamation marks are not found in Russian. But they are actively practiced in Spanish. Of course, those who study this language should know how and why to use them. And you and I will simply find out where the inverted exclamation and question marks came from and what they are needed for.

A little history

The inverted question mark, called signos de interrogacion in Spanish, and the inverted exclamation mark, called signos de exclamacion, have quite an interesting history.

And we will start from afar. The first question symbol was depicted in a copy of the Bible in Syria, which dates back to the 5th century. But he didn’t look like himself. The question of that time was recognized as a double point. It was placed not only at the end, but also at the very beginning of the interrogative sentence.

If you pick up ancient works written in Hebrew or Arabic, you will find that there are no punctuation marks. No precise evidence that the question mark came to these languages ​​from the Syriac language. Most likely, it appeared on its own.

Interestingly, in Greece there is no question mark that we are used to. Here it is replaced only by a period, under which a comma is placed.

In the form in which we know the question mark today, it appeared only in the 16th century. And it turned out from two letters - the first and the last - the word “quaestio”, which translates as “question”. Moreover, initially the question mark looked like the letter “o”, at the top of which was written the letter “q”. Over time, these two letters became the question mark as we know it today.

How did inverted punctuation appear in Spain?

But in Spanish writing, inverted question marks and exclamation marks were introduced intentionally. This event took place in 1754 and was done by the Spanish Royal Academy.

Since then, all Spaniards simply cannot imagine books, newspapers and magazines without their inverted exclamation and question marks. They are incredibly comfortable for them. And the Spaniards themselves do not understand why other nations do not use inverted punctuation marks in writing.

This allows you to see in advance whether you are about to read an exclamatory or interrogative sentence. This means you will pronounce it with the necessary intonation from the very beginning.

Inverted question mark. Example sentences

Let us repeat - in Spanish, at the end of a sentence, a punctuation mark that is familiar to us is placed, in this case a question. But at the beginning this sign will be upside down.

As an example, a few sentences:

  1. ¿Qué día de la semana es hoy? - What day is it today?
  2. Alberto ¿cuántos años tienes? — Alberto, how old are you?
  3. ¿On salido a la calle? What's the point? What's the portal? ¿en donde?
  4. Ernesto supo que aquel tiempo vendría, pero ¿cuando?

There are some rules to remember. So, for example, if the question word is not at the beginning of the sentence, but the address comes first, then an inverted question mark is placed after the address, but before the question word. As an example, take the second sentence above.

If you ask several questions at once, then only the first of them begins with a capital letter. Further capital letter not used. But inverted questions are a must. An example is the third sentence.

Inverted exclamation point. Examples

The exclamation mark, like the question mark, is first placed upside down, and at the end of the sentence - as usual for us.

The phrase is pronounced with an exclamatory intonation. As an example - ¡pase lo que pase! Translation - where ours did not disappear.

If you need to make an interrogative sentence with exclamatory intonation, then put an inverted question mark first and an exclamation mark at the end. Example - ¿De donde vienes, ingrato! Translation - Where are you from, ungrateful!

Here's another example: what are you doing?! In Spanish it will look like this: ¡¿Qué haces?!

In the 19th century, attempts were made to introduce inverted question marks and exclamation marks into the Portuguese language. But they didn’t take root there. I wonder if we would use these signs if we were also offered to use them?

Inverted question mark and
inverted exclamation mark
¿¡
¿
O.S.C. APC ¡

Characteristics

Name

¿ : inverted question mark
¡ : inverted exclamation mark

Unicode

¿ : U+00BF
¡ : U+00A1

HTML code

¿ ‎: ¿ or ¿
¡ ‎: ¡ or ¡

¿ ‎: 0xBF
¡ ‎: 0xA1

URL code

¿ : %C2%BF
¡ : %C2%A1

Reversed interrogative (¿ ) And exclamation mark (¡ ) - punctuation marks, which begin, respectively, interrogative and exclamatory sentences in writing in some languages, for example, Spanish, Greek and Church Slavonic.

In Spanish they are called: inverted interrogative ( signos de interrogación) and exclamation point ( signos de exclamacion).

Usage

Inverted question marks and exclamation marks are used before the first letter of a question sentence.

Second edition of the Ortografía de la lengua castellana (1754), the inverted question mark and exclamation mark are recommended to indicate the beginning of a question and an exclamation, respectively [ ] . However, these rules slowly came into use [ ] . There are books from the 19th century [ which?] , where these characters were not used when typing.

They can also be combined in several ways to express a combination of questioning and surprise or disbelief. Initial marks are usually reflected at the end of sentences with the usual question marks and exclamation marks (?, !), which are used in most languages ​​of European origin. It should also be noted that inverted characters are placed below normal ones, that is, they extend beyond the bottom line of the line. In the Spanish language, inverted question marks and exclamation marks appeared only in the middle of the 18th century, but they did not become widespread immediately. Currently under the influence English language there is an opposite tendency - to put signs only at the end. Inverted signs were first proposed by the Royal Academy of the Spanish Language (Spanish). Real Academia Española ) in 1754 and adopted over the next century.

In computers, inverted characters are supported by various standards, including ISO 8859-1, Unicode, and HTML. They can be set directly from keyboards intended for use in Spanish-speaking countries or through alternative methods on other keyboards.

Some writers do not use these characters for short sentences. The same rule applies to the Catalan language.

Laureate Nobel Prize Pablo Neruda refused to use an inverted question mark.

When corresponding on the Internet, correspondents can omit upside down characters to save typing time.

Story

Inverted question marks and exclamation marks are widely used in Spanish and occasionally in some others of related origin, such as old standard Galician (now acceptable but not recommended) or Catalan, as well as Varayan and Asturian. In Spanish they are called inverted interrogative ( signos de interrogación) and exclamation point ( signos de exclamacion). In Spanish, when writing, question marks and exclamation marks are placed both at the end and at the beginning of a sentence: only at the beginning these marks are “upside down”

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