At Sign
Rules and Examples
The
at sign
is most commonly used in email addresses and on Facebook and
Twitter.Click Here for Step-by-Step Rules, Stories and Exercises to Practice All English Tenses
The at sign looks like a lowercase letter "a" surrounded by an open circle ( @ ).
The at sign does not have a universal name.
Some common names for the at sign in the English language are:
- at sign
- commercial at
- commercial a
- apetail
- at
- about
Many languages have nicknames for the symbol based on its shape.
| Nickname | Meaning | Language of Origin |
| aapstert | monkey's tail | Afrikaans |
| snabel | elephant's trunk | Danish |
| kissanhnta | cat's tail | Finnish |
| affenschwanz | monkey's tail | German |
| dalphaengi | snail | Korean |
Writing @
We make the at
sign ( @ ) on most keyboards by holding the SHIFT key
and pressing the 2
on the top number line. To draw the at sign by hand, write a lowercase "a" and continue the line from the tail of the "a " all the way around. Do not close the circle at the bottom.
Origin
The at sign
comes from the Latin word "ad" which means "at." The symbol ( @ ) may have developed from writing the word "ad" in cursive.
Rules for using the at
sign
1. Use the at
sign in email (electronic mail) addresses
Beginning in 1971, the at
sign became a popular symbol because of its use in email
addresses.In email addresses, the at sign means "located at."
Examples:
2. The at sign is used on Twitter and other sites to reply to someone
- @SamJones
- @SallySmith
- @BillDoe
3. The at sign is used on Facebook to "tag" someone in a post
When you "tag" someone in your Facebook post, their name is connected to your post and the post will appear on their Facebook page as well as yours.Example:
We had a great time tonight with @RichardJohnson and @LisaScott!
The at signs will not appear in the final post. The final post will look like:
We had a great time tonight with Richard Johnson and Lisa Scott!
Other Facebook users will see the post on the original poster's page and the "tagged" friends' pages.
4. @ = at the rate of
Historically, the at sign was used in accounting to mean "at the rate of." Grocery stores, gas stations and other businesses use the at sign to represent cost per unit.We still use the at sign in this way, but it is now most commonly associated with the internet.
Examples:
- Eggs @ $3.50/dozen
Purchase eggs at the rate of $3.50 per dozen
- 25 gallons @ $2.99/gallon
25 gallons of gas at the rate of $2.99 per gallon
- 5 hours @ $13.00 an hour
5 hours at the rate of $13.00 per hour
These were the uses of the at sign. Now that you know them, it is time to practice! Read and do exercises.
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