octothorpe

noun

1. (US)The hash or square symbol #, used mainly in telephony and computing.

   “The pad 1 provides keys for numerals 0 to 9, while the sextile or asterisk (*) key is decoded to provide a decimal point and the octothorp ( # ) key generates a command to send the contents of the memory unto the telephone line through a send circuit 7, a coupling circuit 8 and the hybrid network 2.”

   “A select group of Sears customers were given a "how to" manual on ordering goods by Touch-Tone. The octothorpe (#) and asterisk (*) buttons are used to separate information and to indicate end of transmission. This is the first system in Canada in which the general public has direct access to a computer from their homes.”

   “Octothorp is the # on a push-button telephone. Rumor at the telephone company is that a man named Charles B. Octothorp, wanting to make his name famous, would approach anyone with a Touch-Tone ’phone, stop, and say admiringly, “That’s a mighty handsome octothorp you have there.””

   “Strings are enclosed in double quotation marks, numbers are not enclosed in anything, and dates and Boolean values are enclosed between octothorpe (#) characters.”