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The mirror of the same coincidence: comparison in mathematics, redirection in a shell.
Between two quantities it compares. After a command it sends that command's output into the named file — and truncates the file first, discarding whatever was there. That truncation is the part that surprises people, and doubling the character appends instead of replacing.
The same character used for a different job: comparison in mathematics, output redirection in a shell.
Drawn from the visual attributes recorded for each symbol. Only traits the two records disagree about are listed.
| Trait | Greater-than sign | Output redirection operator |
|---|---|---|
| Built from | lines and dots, abstract | abstract |
| Orientation | mirrored | upright |
| Greater-than sign | Output redirection operator | |
|---|---|---|
| Where | Between two quantities | After a command, before a filename |
| What it means | The left is larger than the right | Write output to this file |
| Destroys anything | No | Yes — the file is truncated first |
| Doubled form | — | Appends instead of replacing |
| Relationship (from Symbolwise's records) | Commonly confused with Output redirection operator — The same character used for a different job: comparison in mathematics, output redirection in a shell. | Commonly confused with Greater-than sign — The same character used for a different job: comparison in mathematics, redirection in a shell. |
Unicode Code Chart: Mathematical Operators (U+2200–U+22FF)
The Unicode Consortium · retrieved 2026-07-30
Authoritative for the character's code point, name and block only. Unicode assigns identity; it does not define what a symbol means in use.
Unicode Code Chart: Basic Latin (U+0000–U+007F)
The Unicode Consortium · retrieved 2026-07-30
Authoritative for the character's code point, name and block only. Unicode assigns identity; it does not define what a symbol means in use.
Wikipedia · retrieved 2026-07-30
Tertiary reference. Used for widely-agreed identity and origin summary, not for contested detail or exact dates.
Glossary of mathematical symbols
Wikipedia · retrieved 2026-07-31
Tertiary reference. Used for what the notation means in ordinary mathematical practice and for attribution of its introduction, not for a claim that any body defines it.
The wide end always faces the larger quantity and the point faces the smaller one — that single rule settles both signs at once, and every mnemonic taught for them is a restatement of it. Thomas Harriot introduced the pair together in a work published in 1631, ten years after his death.
Alpha is a Greek letter and stands for a quantity — an angle, a coefficient, a significance level. The proportionality sign is an operator and stands between two quantities to say they keep a constant ratio. The drawings differ in that the proportionality sign's right-hand stroke runs out in an open curve rather than closing into the letter's tail.
Look at the left-hand edge. A straight flat back is an AND gate: the output is true only when every input is. A curved concave back is an OR gate: true when any input is. Everything else about the shapes is similar, which is why the back edge is worth checking deliberately rather than at a glance.
Look at what follows. A prefix never stands alone — it is glued to a unit symbol, as in kW or kg. A constant stands by itself in an equation. Careful physical writing subscripts the constant as k_B for exactly this reason, and the kelvin's capital K is a third claimant to the same letter.