Equals sign

How to type it

Right pinky.

Common uses

• The equals sign says that the two sides of an equation have the same value.
• Every spreadsheet formula begins with =, as in =A1+B1.

Less common uses

• Welsh mathematician Robert Recorde introduced the sign in 1557, using two parallel lines because no two things can be more equal.
• In many programming languages, = assigns a value, while == tests whether two values are equal.