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0006 This manual was originally translated from LATEX.HLP v1.0a in the
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0008 George D. Greenwade of Sam Houston State University.  The
0009 LaTeX 2.09 version was written by Stephen Gilmore.  The
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0012 using Hypertext Help with LaTeX, by Sheldon Green, and
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0020 Copyright 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013,
0021 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 Karl Berry.
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0023 Copyright 1988, 1994, 2007 Stephen Gilmore.
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0025 Copyright 1994, 1995, 1996 Torsten Martinsen.
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0042 <title>Spacing in math mode (LaTeX2e unofficial reference manual (November 2018))</title>
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0113 <a name="Spacing-in-math-mode"></a>
0114 <div class="header">
0115 <p>
0116 Next: <a href="Math-miscellany.html#Math-miscellany" accesskey="n" rel="next">Math miscellany</a>, Previous: <a href="Over_002d-and-Underlining.html#Over_002d-and-Underlining" accesskey="p" rel="prev">Over- and Underlining</a>, Up: <a href="Math-formulas.html#Math-formulas" accesskey="u" rel="up">Math formulas</a> &nbsp; [<a href="index.html#SEC_Contents" title="Table of contents" rel="contents">Contents</a>][<a href="IndexDocument.html#Index" title="Index" rel="index">Index</a>]</p>
0117 </div>
0118 <hr>
0119 <a name="Spacing-in-math-mode-1"></a>
0120 <h3 class="section">16.6 Spacing in math mode</h3>
0121 
0122 <a name="index-spacing-within-math-mode"></a>
0123 <a name="index-math-mode_002c-spacing"></a>
0124 
0125 <p>When typesetting mathematics, LaTeX puts in spacing according to the
0126 normal rules for mathematics texts.  If you enter <code>y=m x</code> then
0127 LaTeX ignores the space and in the output the m is next to the x,
0128 as <em>y=mx</em>.
0129 </p>
0130 <p>But LaTeX&rsquo;s rules sometimes need tweaking.  For example, in an
0131 integral the tradition is to put a small extra space between the
0132 <code>f(x)</code> and the <code>dx</code>, here done with the <code>\,</code> command.
0133 </p>
0134 <div class="example">
0135 <pre class="example">\int_0^1 f(x)\,dx
0136 </pre></div>
0137 
0138 <p>LaTeX provides the commands that follow for use in math mode.  Many
0139 of these spacing definitions are expressed in terms of the math unit
0140 <em>mu</em>.  It is defined as 1/18em, where the em is taken from the
0141 current math symbols family (see <a href="Units-of-length.html#Units-of-length">Units of length</a>).  Thus, a
0142 <code>\thickspace</code> is something like 5/18 times the width of
0143 a&nbsp;&lsquo;<samp>M</samp>&rsquo;.
0144 </p>
0145 <dl compact="compact">
0146 <dt><code>\;</code></dt>
0147 <dd><a name="index-_005c_003b"></a>
0148 <a name="index-_005cthickspace"></a>
0149 <a name="spacing-in-math-mode-thickspace"></a><p>Synonym: <code>\thickspace</code>.  Normally <code>5.0mu plus 5.0mu</code>.  Math
0150 mode only.
0151 </p>
0152 </dd>
0153 <dt><code>\:</code></dt>
0154 <dt><code>\&gt;</code></dt>
0155 <dd><a name="index-_005c_003a"></a>
0156 <a name="index-_005c_003e-1"></a>
0157 <a name="index-_005cmedspace"></a>
0158 <a name="spacing-in-math-mode-medspace"></a><p>Synonym: <code>\medspace</code>.  Normally <code>4.0mu plus 2.0mu minus 4.0mu</code>.
0159 Math mode only.
0160 </p>
0161 </dd>
0162 <dt><code>\,</code></dt>
0163 <dd><a name="index-_005c_002c"></a>
0164 <a name="index-_005cthinspace"></a>
0165 <a name="index-thin-space"></a>
0166 <a name="Spacing-in-math-mode_002f_005cthinspace"></a><a name="spacing-in-math-mode-thinspace"></a><p>Synonym: <code>\thinspace</code>.  Normally <code>3mu</code>, which is 1/6em.
0167 Can be used in both math mode and text mode (see <a href="_005cthinspace-_0026-_005cnegthinspace.html#g_t_005cthinspace-_0026-_005cnegthinspace">\thinspace &amp; \negthinspace</a>).
0168 </p>
0169 <p>This space is widely used, for instance between the function and the
0170 infinitesimal in an integral <code>\int f(x)\,dx</code> and, if an author does
0171 this, before punctuation in a displayed equation.
0172 </p>
0173 <div class="example">
0174 <pre class="example">The antiderivative is
0175 \begin{equation}
0176   3x^{-1/2}+3^{1/2}\,.
0177 \end{equation}
0178 </pre></div>
0179 
0180 </dd>
0181 <dt><code>\!</code></dt>
0182 <dd><a name="index-_005c_0021"></a>
0183 <a name="index-_005cnegthinspace"></a>
0184 <a name="index-thin-space_002c-negative"></a>
0185 <a name="spacing-in-math-mode-negthinspace"></a><p>A negative thin space. Normally <code>-3mu</code>.  The <code>\!</code> command is
0186 math mode only but the <code>\negthinspace</code> command is available for
0187 text mode (see <a href="_005cthinspace-_0026-_005cnegthinspace.html#g_t_005cthinspace-_0026-_005cnegthinspace">\thinspace &amp; \negthinspace</a>).
0188 </p>
0189 </dd>
0190 <dt><code>\quad</code></dt>
0191 <dd><a name="index-quad"></a>
0192 <a name="index-_005cquad"></a>
0193 <a name="spacing-in-math-mode-quad"></a><p>This is 18mu, that is, 1em. This is often used for space
0194 surrounding equations or expressions, for instance for the space between
0195 two equations inside a <code>displaymath</code> environment.  It is available
0196 in both text and math mode.
0197 </p>
0198 </dd>
0199 <dt><code>\qquad</code></dt>
0200 <dd><a name="index-_005cqquad"></a>
0201 <a name="spacing-in-math-mode-qquad"></a><p>A length of 2 quads, that is, 36mu = 2em.  It is available in
0202 both text and math mode.
0203 </p></dd>
0204 </dl>
0205 
0206 <table class="menu" border="0" cellspacing="0">
0207 <tr><td align="left" valign="top">&bull; <a href="_005csmash.html#g_t_005csmash" accesskey="1">\smash</a>:</td><td>&nbsp;&nbsp;</td><td align="left" valign="top">Eliminate height or depth of a subformula.
0208 </td></tr>
0209 <tr><td align="left" valign="top">&bull; <a href="_005cphantom-_0026-_005cvphantom-_0026-_005chphantom.html#g_t_005cphantom-_0026-_005cvphantom-_0026-_005chphantom" accesskey="2">\phantom &amp; \vphantom &amp; \hphantom</a>:</td><td>&nbsp;&nbsp;</td><td align="left" valign="top">Make empty box with the same size as the argument.
0210 </td></tr>
0211 </table>
0212 
0213 
0214 
0215 
0216 <hr/><div class='referenceinfo'> <a href='https://latexref.xyz/'> <i>Unofficial LaTeX2e reference manual</i></a></div>
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