White-Feathered Rightwards Arrow

A forward pointer with an ornamental, archer's-arrow look.

The tail feathers, called fletching on a real arrow, turn a plain direction mark into a decoration. Use it to introduce a destination, highlight a line, or give a heading a literary touch. It carries no fixed emotional meaning in conversation.

This shape comes from Zapf Dingbats, a set of printer's symbols that type designer Hermann Zapf sketched in 1977 and the type company ITC released in 1978. The set spread through PostScript laser printing in the 1980s and early 1990s, and Unicode later encoded its characters.

Why does the feathered arrow feel more decorative?

Because the feathers recall a real arrow in flight.

Arrows began as pictures of the weapon: a 1737 engineering diagram drew a feathered arrow to show a waterwheel's motion. Maps, logic, and screen interfaces later stripped arrows down to a line and a head. ➳ keeps the old feathers, so in a diagram it still directs attention, while in a personal message it reads as style more than instruction.

Where should I put ➳ in a message?

Before what you want noticed; after a phrase as a flourish.

Put it directly before a link or line when you mean “here,” “next,” or “this way.” A row of them makes a serious instruction look like a party invitation; one is clearer.