HTML Entity for Inverted Exclamation Mark (¡)

Beginner

6 min read

Updated: Sep 2026

1 example

Unicode U+00A1

HTML Entity for Inverted Exclamation Mark (¡) tutorial illustration

Definition

What Is the Inverted Exclamation Mark Entity?

Inverted Exclamation Mark (¡) is the Latin-1 Supplement character at Unicode U+00A1 (INVERTED EXCLAMATION MARK). It opens exclamations in Spanish and related languages (e.g. ¡Hola!).

Remember

Character     ¡
Unicode       U+00A1
Hex entity    &#x00A1;
Decimal       &#161;
Named entity  &iexcl;
CSS escape    \00A1

All of these produce the same glyph: ¡. Prefer ¡ in HTML source for clarity; use hex/decimal when generating entities, and CSS \00A1 only in content.

Reference

Quick Reference

One table for every form you will actually use.

Form	Code	Where it goes
Named entity	`¡`	HTML markup (best default)
Hex entity	`¡`	HTML markup
Decimal entity	`¡`	HTML markup
CSS escape	`\00A1`	Stylesheet `content`
Direct character	`¡`	UTF-8 HTML text

When to Use Which

Situation	Use
Readable Spanish HTML source	`¡`
Need a numeric entity in HTML	`¡` or `¡`
Generated text via `::before` / `::after`	`content: "\00A1"`
UTF-8 page, typing is easy	Type `¡` directly
Spanish question (not exclamation)	Use Inverted Question Mark (`¿`)

See it

Live Preview

Inverted Exclamation Mark in common Spanish contexts.

Greeting ¡Hola!

Large glyph ¡

Phrase ¡Qué bien!

Named entity ¡ → ¡

With entities Hex: ¡ | Decimal: ¡ | Named: ¡

Code

Complete HTML Example

One page that shows Inverted Exclamation Mark with hex, decimal, named, and CSS. Use View Output or open the live editor.

Hex + Decimal + Named + CSS

All four ways to produce ¡ in a single document.

html

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="UTF-8">
  <title>Inverted Exclamation Mark (¡) in HTML</title>
  <style>
    #point::after {
      content: "\00A1";
    }
  </style>
</head>
<body>
  <p>Using Hex Code: &#x00A1;</p>
  <p>Using HTML Code: &#161;</p>
  <p>Using Named Entity: &iexcl;</p>
  <p id="point">Using CSS Entity: </p>
  <p>Spanish: &iexcl;Hola!</p>
</body>
</html>

Try It Yourself

How It Works

1. Hex: U+00A1 → ¡ in HTML. The browser turns it into ¡.

2. Decimal: same code point as 161 → ¡. Same result as hex.

3. Named: ¡ is the HTML5 name for this character — easiest to read in source.

4. CSS: use \00A1 in content (not an HTML entity). #point::after appends that ¡ after the paragraph text.

5. Spanish: open with ¡ and close with ! — e.g. ¡Hola! → ¡Hola!.

Pitfalls & Tips

Common mistakes when working with the Inverted Exclamation Mark.

Named

Prefer ¡

Named form is clearer than numeric codes in hand-written HTML.

Spanish

Pair with !

Open with ¡ and close with ! — e.g. ¡Hola!.

CSS vs HTML

Do not mix escapes

\00A1 belongs in CSS. ¡ / ¡ / ¡ belong in HTML.

Look-alikes

Not ! or ¿

! is the closing mark. ¿ (¿) opens questions — a different character.

Semicolon

End references

Always finish with ; — write ¡, not &iexcl.

Default

Type ¡ when you can

On UTF-8 pages you may type ¡ directly; entities help when encoding must be explicit.

Compatibility

Browser Support

Inverted Exclamation Mark (U+00A1) and its entity forms (¡, ¡, ¡, CSS \\00A1) are supported in all mainstream browsers.

✓ Universal support

Inverted Exclamation Mark (¡)

Use ¡, or encode with hex, decimal, or CSS escape — same glyph everywhere.

100% Browser coverage

Google Chrome Supported

Yes

Microsoft Edge Supported

Yes

Mozilla Firefox Supported

Yes

Apple Safari Supported

Yes

Opera Supported

Yes

Internet Explorer All versions

Yes

U+00A1 / entities Full support

Bottom line: Prefer ¡ in HTML for readability. Use ¡ or ¡ when encoding must be numeric, and \\00A1 only inside CSS content.

Remember

Key Takeaways

Unicode: inverted exclamation is U+00A1 (decimal 161).
HTML: prefer ¡, or use ¡ / ¡.
CSS: use \00A1 inside content for generated text.
Spanish: open with ¡ and close with !.

One line: U+00A1 → ¡ / ¡ / ¡ / CSS \00A1.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I display the Inverted Exclamation Mark (¡) in HTML using entities?

Use ¡ (named), ¡ (hex), ¡ (decimal), or the CSS escape \00A1 in the content property. All render ¡.

What is the Unicode value for Inverted Exclamation Mark?

U+00A1 (INVERTED EXCLAMATION MARK). Hex 00A1, decimal 161. It belongs to the Latin-1 Supplement block.

Is there a named HTML entity for ¡?

Yes. ¡ is the named HTML5 entity for ¡ and is supported in all modern browsers.

When should I use the Inverted Exclamation Mark HTML entity?

Use it to open exclamations in Spanish and related languages (e.g. ¡Hola!). Prefer ¡ for readable source; pair with a closing ! at the end of the phrase.

What is the difference between HTML code and CSS entity for ¡?

HTML entities (¡, ¡, or ¡) go in markup. The CSS escape \00A1 is used in stylesheets (usually in the content property of ::before/::after). Both render ¡.

How is ¡ different from ! or ¿?

! (U+0021) is the regular closing exclamation. ¿ (U+00BF, ¿) is the inverted question mark. ¡ opens exclamations; ! closes them.

Did you know?

Inverted Exclamation Mark is Unicode U+00A1 (decimal 161). HTML5 provides the named entity ¡ — prefer it for readable Spanish punctuation, or use ¡ / ¡. Pair ¡ with closing ! (e.g. ¡Hola!).

Next: Inverted Glottal Stop

Learn the HTML entity for Inverted Glottal Stop (U+01BE) — next in this sequence.

Inverted Glottal Stop tutorial →

About the author

Mari Selvan M P 🔗

Developer, cloud engineer, and technical writer

Experience 12 years building web and cloud systems
Focus Full Stack Development, AWS, and Developer Education

I write practical tutorials so students and working developers can learn by doing—from databases and APIs to deployment on AWS.

AWS Certified Developer – Associate (Credly)

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