{"id":57432,"date":"2025-09-20T18:20:21","date_gmt":"2025-09-20T23:20:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/?p=57432"},"modified":"2025-09-20T18:20:21","modified_gmt":"2025-09-20T23:20:21","slug":"our-favorite-alt-codes-more-or-less","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/?p=57432","title":{"rendered":"Our Favorite Alt Codes (more or less)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

We’ve asked the Elders <\/strong>to provide us with their favorite Windows Alt codes. Here’s mine:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Since none of the elders responded, we asked Elder G<\/strong> to speculate on their favorite Alt codes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Some of our staff did take the task seriously….<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Late breaking:<\/strong> Elder DZ reported his favorite Alt code, an Egyptian hieroglyph:
\"\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Note 1<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

More or less. Plus or minus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Allow us to enumerate:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spanish:<\/strong>
\u2022 More or less: M\u00e1s o menos<\/em>
\u2022 Plus or minus: M\u00e1s\/menos<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

French:<\/strong>
\u2022 More or less: Plus ou moins<\/em>. (This phrase covers both meanings, but \u00e0 peu pr\u00e8s<\/em> or environ<\/em> mean “approximately” and are very common).
\u2022 Plus or minus: Plus ou moins<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Italian:<\/strong>
\u2022 More or less: Pi\u00f9 o meno<\/em> (like French, this is used for both concepts). Circa<\/em> is a common word for “about” or “approximately.”
\u2022 Plus or minus: Pi\u00f9 o meno<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mandarin Chinese:<\/strong>
\u2022 More or less: *\u5dee\u4e0d\u591a* (ch\u00e0budu\u014d) or *\u6216\u591a\u6216\u5c11* (hu\u00f2 du\u014d hu\u00f2 sh\u01ceo)
\u2022 Plus or minus: *\u6b63\u8d1f* (zh\u00e8ng f\u00f9 – literally “positive-negative”) or *\u52a0\u51cf* (ji\u0101 ji\u01cen – “add-subtract”)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Japanese:<\/strong>
\u2022 More or less: *\u591a\u304b\u308c\u5c11\u306a\u304b\u308c* (\u014dkare sukunakare). More commonly, people say *\u3060\u3044\u305f\u3044* (daitai) for “approximately.”
\u2022 Plus or minus: *\u30d7\u30e9\u30b9\u30de\u30a4\u30ca\u30b9* (purasu mainasu) – a direct loanword from English.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Korean:<\/strong>
\u2022 More or less: *\uc5bc\ucd94* (eolchu – “roughly”) or *\uc5b4\ub290 \uc815\ub3c4* (eoneu jeongdo – “to some extent”)
\u2022 Plus or minus: *\ud50c\ub7ec\uc2a4 \ub9c8\uc774\ub108\uc2a4* (peulleoseu mainaseu) – also a loanword from English.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arabic:<\/strong>
\u2022 More or less: *\u062a\u0642\u0631\u064a\u0628\u064b\u0627* (taqreeban – “approximately”)
\u2022 Plus or minus: *\u0632\u0627\u0626\u062f \u0623\u0648 \u0646\u0627\u0642\u0635* (z\u0101’id aw n\u0101qi\u1e63)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Six of one, half dozen of the other<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    \n
  1. Six of one, half dozen of the other<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Tweedledee and Tweedledum<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Potayto, potahto<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Same difference<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. A distinction without a difference<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. Water under the bridge<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. Who cares?<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  8. What’s the difference?<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  9. No skin off my nose\/back<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  10. A drop in the bucket<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Other Languages (Humorous Equivalents)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n