multiply
What does multiply mean?
The ✖️ emoji depicts a thick, solid black "X", officially known as the heavy multiplication X. While its roots are firmly planted in mathematics to represent multiplication, its primary meaning in digital communication is to signal a mistake, an incorrect answer, or a flat-out "no." It serves as a visual stop sign, a mark of rejection, or a quick way to indicate that an option is unavailable or invalid. Beyond math equations and grading tests, this emoji frequently appears in text messages and social media to indicate cancellation, closure, or a ban. Users drop it to show they are crossing something off their to-do list, shutting down a bad idea, or voting against a proposal. It is also widely utilized in the fashion, music, and entertainment industries to cleanly denote exciting collaborations, effectively replacing the word "and" or "featuring."
Slang & Modern Usage
In internet slang, the ✖️ emoji is a popular symbol for shutting someone down or marking them as "canceled." If a public figure does something controversial, users might spam the ✖️ in their comments to signify they are withdrawing their support and crossing that person out of their lives. It also represents a "strike" against someone who messed up—often used in threes (✖️✖️✖️) to say "you're out." Gen Z and millennials heavily use it to highlight brand or artist collaborations in a sleek, streetwear-inspired way (e.g., *Artist ✖️ Producer*). Additionally, it pops up in social media bios to represent the straight-edge lifestyle (✖️✖️✖️), indicating abstinence from alcohol and drugs. It also functions playfully as a digital kiss mark in an "XOXO" sign-off when hyping up a friend's selfie.
Emoji Combos
Technical Information
| Unicode | U+2716 |
| HTML Entity | ✖ |
| CSS | \2716 |
| JavaScript | \u{2716} |
| Unicode Version | Unicode 0.6 |
| Status | Fully-qualified |