ampersand

American  

[am-per-sand, am-per-sand] / ˈæm pərˌsænd, ˌæm pərˈsænd /

noun

1. a character or symbol (& or ) for and .

   Smith & Jones, Inc.

---

ampersand British  

/ ˈæmpəˌsænd /

noun

1. the character (&), meaning and

   John Brown & Co

---

ampersand Cultural  

1. A symbol (see also symbol) for and (&), as in Dun & Bradstreet.

---

Etymology

Origin of ampersand

1820–30; contraction of and per se and literally, (the symbol) & by itself (stands for) and; see per se

Explanation

An ampersand is a shorthand symbol for "and." It looks like this: & . People often use an ampersand when they want to save space — like when they're writing on Twitter or trying to come up with a cool company logo. The symbol comes from ancient Roman times and can be seen in really old Pompeiian graffiti. The word ampersand is a mix of Latin and English and a condensed version of the phrase "and per se and," which means "(the character) '&' by itself is 'and'."

Example Sentences

Cheech & Chong — the version joined by an ampersand in our collective consciousness — are gone.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 23, 2025

The only thing missing is the word “Mercantile” and an ampersand to complete this Brooklyn-chic vibe.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 20, 2022

Bethanne Patrick’s January picks cover train wrecks, political drama, enraging inequality, the complications of polyamory and the joy of the ampersand.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 11, 2022

In 2010, it ditched the ampersand in favor of the plus sign in its name.

From New York Times • Dec. 23, 2021

This e-text contains a number of unusual characters: œ oe ligature, ✠ maltese cross, ⁊ tironian ampersand, ō o-macron, c̃ c-tilde, ŷ y-circumflex, and ȝ yogh.

From Anglo-Saxon Literature by Earle, John