octothorpe


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oc·to·thorpe

 (ŏk′tə-thôrp′)
n.
The symbol (#).
[Coined in the 1960s by researchers at Bell Telephone Laboratories : octo- (probably in reference to the eight endpoints of the lines in the symbol) + -thorpe (perhaps from thorp, in reference to the resemblance of the symbol to a village surrounded by fields, or after James Francis Thorpebecause one of the researchers was an advocate of the restoration of Thorpe's Olympic medals).]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

octothorpe

- The pound key on a keyboard or keypad is technically an octothorpe.
See also related terms for keyboard.
Farlex Trivia Dictionary. © 2012 Farlex, Inc. All rights reserved.
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