Escape Characters

Escape characters allow you to display characters in Markdown that would otherwise have special meanings. By adding a backslash \ before a character, you can cancel its special function.

Basic Escape Concept

What is Escaping

In Markdown, some characters have special meanings (such as * for emphasis). When you want to display these characters themselves, you need to use escaping.

This is *italic* text.
This is \*a plain asterisk\* text.

Rendered Output:

This is italic text. This is *a plain asterisk* text.

Characters That Need Escaping

Complete List

The following characters have special meanings in Markdown and need to be escaped:

Character	Description	Escape Syntax	Usage
\	Backslash	\\	Escape character
`	Backtick	\`	Inline code
*	Asterisk	\*	Emphasis, lists
_	Underscore	\_	Emphasis
{}	Braces	\{ \}	Extended syntax
[]	Brackets	\[ \]	Links, images
()	Parentheses	\( \)	Links, images
#	Hash	\#	Headings
+	Plus	\+	Lists
-	Dash	\-	Lists, horizontal rule
.	Period	\.	Ordered lists
!	Exclamation	\!	Images

Common Escape Examples

Asterisks and Underscores

❌ Not escaped:
This filename is file_name_v2.txt
This formula is 2*3*4 = 24

✅ Escaped:
This filename is file\_name\_v2.txt
This formula is 2\*3\*4 = 24

Rendered Output:

❌ Not escaped: This filename is file_name_v2.txt This formula is 234 = 24

✅ Escaped: This filename is file_name_v2.txt This formula is 2*3*4 = 24

Hash Headings

❌ Not escaped:
# TODO: Finish the task

✅ Escaped:
\# TODO: Finish the task

Rendered Output:

❌ Not escaped:

TODO: Finish the task

✅ Escaped: # TODO: Finish the task

List Symbols

❌ Not escaped:
Price: 100 - 200 USD
Steps: 1. Prepare 2. Execute

✅ Escaped:
Price: 100 \- 200 USD
Steps: 1\. Prepare 2\. Execute

Rendered Output:

❌ Not escaped: Price: 100 - 200 USD Steps: 1. Prepare 2. Execute

✅ Escaped: Price: 100 - 200 USD Steps: 1. Prepare 2. Execute

Link Syntax

❌ Not escaped:
See the documentation [here](http://example.com)

✅ Escaped (showing raw syntax):
See the documentation \[here\]\(http://example.com\)

Rendered Output:

❌ Not escaped: See the documentation here

✅ Escaped (showing raw syntax): See the documentation [here](http://example.com)

Special Cases

Backslash Itself

To display a backslash character, use double backslashes:

File path: C:\\Users\\Username\\Documents
Unix path: /home/user/documents

Rendered Output:

File path: C:\Users\Username\Documents Unix path: /home/user/documents

Escaping Backticks

To display backticks in code:

Use `` \` `` to wrap code
Use ``` \`\`\` ``` to create code blocks

Rendered Output:

Use \` to wrap code Use \`\`\` to create code blocks

Backslash at Line End

A backslash at the end of a line has a special meaning (forced line break):

First line\
Second line (forced line break)

First line\\
Second line (shows backslash)

Rendered Output:

First line
Second line (forced line break)

First line\ Second line (shows backslash)

Escaping in Code

Inline Code

In inline code, most characters do not need to be escaped:

Code: `let result = 2 * 3 + 1;`
Path: `C:\Users\*\Documents`

Rendered Output:

Code: let result = 2 * 3 + 1; Path: C:\Users\*\Documents

Code Blocks

In code blocks, characters are preserved as-is:

```javascript
// These symbols do not need escaping
const pattern = /[.*+?^${}()|[\]\\]/g;
const path = "C:\\Users\\*\\Documents";
```

Rendered Output:

// These symbols do not need escaping
const pattern = /[.*+?^${}()|[\]\\]/g;
const path = "C:\\Users\\*\\Documents";

Practical Application Scenarios

1. Technical Documentation

## Configuration File Syntax

The configuration file uses the following format:

# Comment line key = value [section]

Note:
- Use \# to start a comment
- Use \[\] to define a section
- Use \* as a wildcard

2. Mathematical Expressions

## Mathematical Formulas

Linear equation: y = a\*x + b
Quadratic equation: y = a\*x² + b\*x + c
Fraction: 1/2 = 0.5

Note: Use \* as the multiplication operator

3. File Paths

## File System

Windows paths:
- System directory: C:\\Windows\\System32
- User directory: C:\\Users\\{username}
- Program directory: C:\\Program Files\\*

Linux paths:
- Root directory: /
- User directory: /home/{username}
- Wildcard: /var/log/\*.log

4. Special Symbol Explanation

## Symbol Meanings

In programming:
- \* usually means pointer or wildcard
- \_ is used for naming conventions (like \_private)
- \# is used for comments or preprocessor directives
- \[\] means array or optional parameter
- \{\} means code block or placeholder

Best Practices for Escaping

1. Escape Only When Needed

✅ Recommended: Only escape ambiguous characters
Filename: config.txt
Price: $10-20

❌ Not recommended: Over-escaping
Filename: config\.txt
Price: \$10\-20

2. Stay Consistent

✅ Recommended: Consistent escape style
Variable names: user\_id, item\_count, max\_size

❌ Not recommended: Inconsistent handling
Variable names: user_id, item\_count, max_size

3. Use Code Formatting

When there are many special characters, consider using code formatting:

✅ Recommended: Use code formatting
Config syntax: `[section]` and `key=value`

❌ Not recommended: Excessive escaping
Config syntax: \[section\] and key\=value

Common Mistakes

1. Forgetting to Escape

❌ Incorrect:
My GitHub username is user_name
This function is called get_data()

✅ Correct:
My GitHub username is user\_name
This function is called get\_data()

2. Over-escaping

❌ Incorrect:
Today is 12\-25
This file is README\.md

✅ Correct:
Today is 12-25  
This file is README.md

3. Context Error

❌ Incorrect: Escaping in code block

let path = "C:\Users\Name"; ← No need for double escaping

✅ Correct:

let path = "C:\Users\Name";

HTML Output

HTML output for escape characters:

This is \*an asterisk\* text

Converted to:

<p>This is *an asterisk* text</p>

Editors and Tools

Editors Supporting Escape Preview

• Visual Studio Code: Markdown Preview Enhanced
• Typora: Real-time preview
• Mark Text: WYSIWYG
• Obsidian: Live rendering

Escape Checking Tools

<!-- markdownlint rules -->
MD049: Emphasis marker consistency
MD050: Emphasis marker style

Related Syntax

• Emphasis Syntax - Usage of asterisks and underscores
• Code Syntax - Special characters in code
• Link Syntax - Brackets and parentheses
• List Syntax - List markers

Practice

Try to correctly display the following:

1. File path: C:\Program Files\*\config.ini
2. Variable names: user_id, file_name, max_count
3. Mathematical expression: 2*x + 3*y = 15
4. Config syntax: [section] and key=value
5. Markdown syntax: **bold** and *italic*

Reference Table

Common Escape Quick Reference

Original	Escaped	Description
\	\\	Backslash
*	\*	Asterisk
_	\_	Underscore
#	\#	Hash
[	\[	Left bracket
]	\]	Right bracket
(	\(	Left parenthesis
)	\)	Right parenthesis
+	\+	Plus
-	\-	Dash/hyphen
.	\.	Period
!	\!	Exclamation