Paste a character to identify it completely — or browse the symbol directory and click any symbol to inspect it.
Every character on a screen is a Unicode code point — a number with an official name, a category and standard encodings. Pasting a mystery character here returns its identity: the code point in the U+XXXX notation developers use, decimal and HTML-entity forms, and its UTF-8 byte sequence, which is what actually travels over networks. That answers the classic questions — 'what is this symbol in my document', 'why does this dash break my script' (usually a smart-quote or a non-breaking space), and 'how do I type this in HTML'.
The directory covers the symbols people most often need to copy — arrows, mathematics, currency, stars, check marks, geometric shapes and fractions — each clickable into the inspector. Characters that render as multi-colour emoji are deliberately not the focus here; text symbols are the working set for documents, code and design.
How do I use a character in HTML? Use the HTML entity shown (for example →) or the decimal form (→). Both are shown for every character inspected.
Why does a copied space break my code? It is often U+00A0, a non-breaking space, which looks identical to a normal space but is a different character. Pasting it here reveals the truth instantly.
What does 'category' mean? Unicode classifies characters (letter, punctuation, symbol, separator, mark and so on). Category explains behaviour — why a 'letter' sorts one way and a 'mark' combines with the character before it.