What 𝐲 means
Not necessarily; check the formula. In some physics and applied mathematics, bold lowercase letters mark vectors, often quantities with size and direction; elsewhere, bold y can mean something else.
This extends print notation that uses weight to distinguish mathematical variables. In 1999, a proposal to the Unicode text-encoding standard argued that separate characters preserve those distinctions in plain-text searches.
Part of the collection
Don't confuse it with
1
Questions people ask
1Can 𝐲 turn into plain y?
Yes. Compatibility cleanup forms NFKC and NFKD fold mathematical styles to plain letters; NFC and NFD leave 𝐲 distinct.
More like this
12
How to type or find 𝐲
- Search it as
- bold y · math y · vector y · unicode y
- Shows up in
- Anything that takes text · its shape is whatever your font draws
Windows (Word)
Windows
HTML
𝐲CSS
\1D432Microsoft Word
As of 2026, in Word, type 1D432 and press AltX; Word converts the hexadecimal code to 𝐲.
Codes and encoding1 code points
HTML decimal
𝐲
HTML hex
𝐲
CSS content
content: "\1D432";
Each escape is closed by the next backslash; a trailing space is needed before a literal hex digit.
URL encoded
%F0%9D%90%B2
1
On screen
1
Code points
2
JS .length
4
UTF-8 bytes
A visible symbol can contain several code points. JS .length counts UTF-16 units; UTF-8 counts bytes.