Mathematics desk
< March 13	<< Feb \| March \| Apr >>	Current desk >

Welcome to the Wikipedia Mathematics Reference Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is a transcluded archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages.

March 14[edit]

Symbol for "Real Numbers" in Microsoft Word[edit]

I am trying to find the symbol for "real numbers" in Microsoft Word. I thought that there was a special symbol. As I remember it, it sort of looked like a fancy (almost like calligraphy) capital letter "R". I think that the lower right-hand "leg" of the "R" letter had a slash through it. I can't seem to find the symbol as I remember it in the Wikipedia article (Real number). So, does anyone remember the symbol as I do? And can that symbol -- or any other -- be found somewhere in Microsoft Word? Thanks. 32.209.55.38 (talk) 19:18, 14 March 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Maybe it looked something like this: [1]. But with a slash cutting through the lower right-hand "leg". 32.209.55.38 (talk) 19:28, 14 March 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Or maybe something like this: [2]. Thanks. 32.209.55.38 (talk) 19:33, 14 March 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Well, this is one of those religious wars. The symbol you're probably thinking of is Unicode blackboard bold R, U+211d, rendered ℝ.

Personally, my view is that blackboard bold is (mostly) for blackboards. It's just a fast way of writing an ordinary R, using chalk. So I prefer to render it R. But if you insist on ℝ, then that's what you're looking for. --Trovatore (talk) 19:48, 14 March 2018 (UTC)[reply]

As noted above, blackboard bold may be what you are thinking of. If not scroll to the bottom of that article for links to various other typefaces which might be what you are looking for.--JohnBlackburne^words_deeds 19:58, 14 March 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks. But ... no, that "Blackboard Bold R" is not at all what I had in mind. That seems like a modern computer symbol. I am referring to a fancy letter "R" that was in textbooks way back when. The letter looked somewhat like this: [3]. Thanks. 32.209.55.38 (talk) 20:22, 14 March 2018 (UTC)[reply]

That to me looks like blackboard bold R, i.e. ℝ; instead of an upright R it is more freehand, but it has the same additional upright stroke, a characteristic of blackboard bold letters.--JohnBlackburne^words_deeds 20:29, 14 March 2018 (UTC)[reply]

The character in Unicode is "Double-struck R" U+211D. How a particular font renders that character will vary, but that's the intended character to represent the "Set of all real numbers". The character you linked to as handwritten is not explicitly in Unicode, so unless there is a font that renders it how you want in Microsoft Word, you won't find it. --Jayron 32 23:21, 14 March 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Have a look at this table, see if anything is familiar. But I think you're talking about something like lR or IR. That's how we used to write the set of real numbers in handwriting. I don't know if it derived as a simplification of the printed blackboard bold R or vice versa, but their histories are certainly linked. 93.142.64.127 (talk) 00:08, 15 March 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Or maybe you're talking about ℞? However that's not a mathematical symbol. 93.142.64.127 (talk) 00:10, 15 March 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks, all. I seem to have cleared up my own confusion. I was actually confusing the "R" symbol (for "Response") that is found in Catholic Mass missals with the "R" symbol for real numbers. This is the "R" symbol that I was (mistakenly) referring to above: [4]. We also have this Wikipedia article: Response (liturgy). Thanks. 32.209.55.38 (talk) 03:06, 15 March 2018 (UTC)[reply]