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Subscript

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AbCd

A subscript is a number, figure, or indicator that appears below the normal line of type, typically used in a formula, mathematical expression, or description of a chemical compound. Probably the most famous example of a subscript is the number 2 in the formula for the molecule of water: H2O.

Typographically, subscripts are set with a lower baseline and a smaller size than the other text. For example, to set H2O correctly, the 2 should be about two-thirds the size of the H and the O. This is done automatically in many text editing and word processing programs.

  • In HTML and Wiki syntax, subscript text is produced by putting it inside the tags <sub> and </sub>.
  • Unicode defines subscript characters such as ₀ ₁ ₂ ₃ ₄ ₅ ₆ ₇ ₈ ₉ ₊ ₋ ₌ ₍ ₎ (&#8320 to &#8334).
  • In TeX's math mode (as used in MediaWiki), subscripts are typeset with the underscore _: $X_{ab}$ produces .

See also