A symbol that indicates that the next character is a member of a different character set.
See Release Character, Escape Sequence, Delimiter
a special character that we can write but will do something special onscreen, such as make a beep, write a tab, and so on
a way to write a symbol that can't normally be written
A character used to indicate that another character in an expression is meant literally and not as an operator. For example, in SQL the character "%" is used as a wildcard character to mean "any number of characters in this position." However, if you want to search for a string such as "10%" (ten percent), you cannot specify "10%" alone as a search string, because the "%" would be interpreted to mean "any number of characters in addition to 10." By specifying an escape character, you can flag instances where you mean "%" as "percent" specifically. For example, if you specify the escape character "#", you can indicate a search string of "10#%" to mean "ten percent." Compare with wildcard character.
In SQL, the symbol used to enclose a delimited identifier. The symbol is the quotation mark ("), except in COBOL programs where the symbol can be specified by the user as either a quotation mark or an apostrophe.
(n.) A control character, which is sometimes used with one or more succeeding characters, that indicates how the code which follows it is interpreted. Also called ESC character.
(1.) In shell programming and TTY programming, the \ (backslash) character, which indicates that the next character is not intended to have the special meaning normally assigned to it. (2.) In general, a character that suppresses or selects a special meaning for one or more characters that follow.
In computing and telecommunication, an escape character is a single character which in a sequence of characters signifies that what is to follow takes an alternative interpretation. The term escape sequence refers to the escape character and the subsequent character or characters so modified.