[Question] In English, can the tilde (~) be used to denote a range?

[bhamv3]

In Chinese and Japanese, and I think some other Asian languages too, the tilde (~) has become a way to express a range. However, as far as I can tell, the tilde isn't used this way in English.

For example, "Pick a number from 1~10," or "We're open from Monday~Friday," or "We'll need 4~5 guys to help out this weekend."

I work as an editor and translator, and whenever I see people use the tilde this way in English, I tend to correct them. But it's gotten to the point where everyone's doing it, and I'm starting to doubt myself. So I ask you, fellow Halforumites: Can the tilde be used to denote a range?

 

[WasabiPoptart]

Mr. Wasabi says in electronics they use it to express range. I have never seen it used in regular writing that way though.

 

[GasBandit]

Wikipedia says that it's a non english useage to denote range. Used alot in Japanese and Chinese, which, coincidentally, is where we get most of our electronics. Generally in english it denotes approximation. As in I've got ~3 beers in the fridge. Give or take.

I'm a conventionalist here.. I say you stick to your guns and keep changing tildes to en dashes.

 

[Tress]

I'm a conventionalist here.. I say you stick to your guns and keep changing tildes to en dashes.

I second that. English speakers would understand it, but it's not a common usage. The dash is more appropriate.

 

[strawman]

It's so closely tied to approximation that most English readers would see "open from 1~3" and read "open from about one to about three"

 

[jwhouk]

The tilde has always indicated approximation for me in mathematical usage. I believe it has something to do with calculus, but I'm probably wrong.

 

[strawman]

From http://web.archive.org/web/20110514....org/archives/2002/10/04/history_of_the_tilde

Digging further, we find this post of Jukka’s from 1998, in which we learn that the tilde was not meant to be the tilde at all, but rather an odd character called the overline. Presumably to balance out the underline, if indeed those sorts of things require balance. There is balance in the universe, to be sure, but I am less sure that it eminates from my keyboard. No matter. The tilde was the tilde so that Spanish-typing types could type the ñ (now referenced in HTML as the named entity &ntilde, but somewhere along the line, it morphed into a general-purpose character with all sorts of geeky uses.

Of course, regular people are not geeks, and thus presented with keyboards that include this weird character (in 1965 it was called a "squiggle" but in 1981 it was officially named the "tilde") and no direction on how to use it.

In the US we used it to replace the equal sign "=" when we're dealing with approximations. We also see it replacing the dash to add a little flair, such as at the signature line of a usenet post, "~Adam" and even as a semicolon replacement ~ which can seem unexpected, but is not uncommon.

Elsewhere it is used to replace various punctuation, most particularly the dash.

So it's usage has morphed over time. It is still used in programming and system administration for very specific purposes, but it was left up to regular people to decide how to use it, and so it has a variety of uses, and no single definition.

 

[Bowielee]

I think we only use it as approximation because it's close to the notation for approximation in writing, which is basically a wavy equals sign or two tildes on one on top of the other.

 

[Thread Necromancer]

..... basically a wavy equals sign or two tildes on one on top of the other.

Dirty tildes. Get a room damnit!!

 

[PatrThom]

in 1965 it was called a "squiggle" but in 1981 it was officially named the "tilde"

This was still part of the Wal~Mart cheer until Wal~Mart became Wal⋆Mart, and later their current Walmart*.

I think we only use it as approximation because it's close to the notation for approximation in writing, which is basically a wavy equals sign or two tildes on one on top of the other.

My teachers used the tilde ~ to denote similarity (i.e., "proportionate"), but the double tilde ≈ to denote approximation. Thus two squares A and B would always be similar A~B (because they're both squares), but they would only be approximate A≈B if their computed areas were actually close to one another.

--Patrick
*I could make a joke about how it now means you're supposed to look for some kind of footnote, but I won't.

 

[Ravenpoe]

This was still part of the Wal~Mart cheer until Wal~Mart became Wal⋆Mart, and later their current Walmart*.


My teachers used the tilde ~ to denote similarity (i.e., "proportionate"), but the double tilde ≈ to denote approximation. Thus two squares A and B would always be similar A~B (because they're both squares), but they would only be approximate A≈B if their computed areas were actually close to one another.

--Patrick
*I could make a joke about how it now means you're supposed to look for some kind of footnote, but I won't.

WalMart* still uses the squiggle in their cheer.

 

[Bowielee]

This was still part of the Wal~Mart cheer until Wal~Mart became Wal⋆Mart, and later their current Walmart*.


My teachers used the tilde ~ to denote similarity (i.e., "proportionate"), but the double tilde ≈ to denote approximation. Thus two squares A and B would always be similar A~B (because they're both squares), but they would only be approximate A≈B if their computed areas were actually close to one another.

--Patrick
*I could make a joke about how it now means you're supposed to look for some kind of footnote, but I won't.

Yes, but most people don't know the character mapping for the double tilde, so use the actual tilde to mean both. If you're doing actual math notation, you have to dig into the character map quite a bit. Though, the current version of MS Word actually as some awesome shortcuts for mathematical notation.

 

[PatrThom]

Yes, but most people don't know the character mapping for the double tilde, so use the actual tilde to mean both. If you're doing actual math notation, you have to dig into the character map quite a bit. Though, the current version of MS Word actually as some awesome shortcuts for mathematical notation.

I don't know the character map either, I copied and pasted it from Wikipedia.

Also, if you are doing actual math notation, you should probably be using LaTeX anyway.

--Patrick