Minus-Or-Plus Sign

This character is known as the Minus-Or-Plus Sign and belongs to the Mathematical Operators block. It represents a compound operator where a negative value is considered alongside a positive one. When reading this symbol aloud, it is typically pronounced as "minus or plus" or "minus-plus." While it resembles the more common plus-minus sign, the vertical order of the operators is reversed to indicate a specific relationship between two expressions or values.

In practical applications, this symbol appears most frequently in mathematical formulas and physics equations. It is used to show two possible solutions where one must be the opposite of the other, often paired with a plus-minus sign to indicate that when one value is positive, the other is negative. Engineers and scientists use it to denote phase shifts or to define error margins in complex calculations. Outside of technical documentation, it is also occasionally found in chess notation to describe an advantage for the black pieces.