X


X is the twenty-fourth letter of the Latin alphabet. It is also the form of St Andrew's Cross.

/ks/ was in Ancient Greece written as Chi 'Χ' (Western Greek) or Xi 'Ξ' (Eastern Greek). In the end, Chi was standardized as /k_h/ (/x/ in Modern Greek) as well as Xi for /ks/. But the Etruscans took over X from older Western Greek, therefore, it stood for /ks/ in Etruscan and /ks/ and /gs/ [gz] in Latin. Only in Kurdish, Azeri, Uzbek, Tatar and Lojban as well as the IPA and SAMPA (the latter is used here) is X pronounced [x] (as in German Bach). Some scholars claim that Latin X is not identical with Greek Χ.

It is also controversial whether Psi, Chi (Khi) and Xi are Greek inventions or whether they are ultimately of Semitic origin.

The letter X is not used in the Italian language, except for words borrowed from other languages, or names of foreigners. No words in the Basic English vocabulary begin with X, but it occurs in words beginning with other letters.

The letter X is spoken as X-ray in the NATO phonetic alphabet.

Meanings for X

  • In a general sense, X represents an unknown or secret, as in project X or mister X.
  • Members of the Nation of Islam change their surnames to "X" to symbolize that their African names were lost in slavery, an example is Malcolm X.
  • In aeronautics, X is the designation given to an experimental aircraft of the US government, for instance, the X-1 rocketplane that first broke the sound barrier. It is also a prefix to experimental types of US military aircraft, for instance, the XB-70.
  • In anime, X is the title of a series based on the manga X/1999 (see X (anime)).
  • In art X alludes to the infinite joy of creation.
  • In astronomy, Planet X is a hypothetical planet in the Solar System beyond the orbit of Pluto.
  • In beverages, X is a symbol for an alcoholic proof of 50; multiple Xes indicate multiples of 50.
  • In cabalistic philosophy X references both birth and death.
  • In clothing X is used as an abbreviation for extra, such as XXL for extra-extra-large or XM for extra-medium.
  • In computing:
    • X is the name of a free graphical windowing system developed at MIT and standard on Unix and Linux; see X Window System.
    • X is often used as a symbol of multiplication, as in denoting the spin (and, later, transfer) speed of CDs and DVDs compared to an original standard speed. This usage is a corruption of the multiplication symbol ×. The data transfer speed for 1X CDs is 153,600 bytes/second and one for 1X DVDs is 1,385,000 bytes/second (approximately 9.02 times faster).
    • X is used as an abbreviation for the Apple operating system Mac OS X.
    • x is the repetition operator in Perl programming language.
  • In French education, X is a nickname for the École Polytechnique.
  • In electrical engineering, X is the symbol for reactance.
  • In English,
    • X is an abbreviation for Christ, as in Xmas (Christmas), X(t)ian (Christian), and Xianity (Christianity).
    • X is a symbol for a kiss, as in love notes. (See Hugs and Kisses.)
    • X is an abbreviation for cross in words like Xing (crossing), or to sign with a cross (often for illiteracy).
    • X also serves as other abbreviations, such as Xtal (Crystal), reXn (reaction), Xlation (translation), and SXSW (South by Southwest Festival).
  • In American slang, X is often used as an abbreviation of ecstasy (MDMA), a synthetic drug.
  • In film
    • X is a rating given to films suitable for an adult-only audience; see X-rated. NC-17 has replaced the X rating in the US. The UK replaced the X rating with the 18 certificate. Australia retains the X rating.
    • X is the name of a 1928 German film; see X (film)
    • The X-Files was a popular 1990s American science fiction television series.
  • In financial securities, X is the stock symbol for United States Steel Corporation.
  • In games, X is representation for a cross in games like tic tac toe (naughts and crosses)
  • In genetics X denotes the X chromosome.
    • In gender XX denotes female in the XY sex-determination system.
  • In mathematics,
    • x commonly represents an unknown variable. Even though any letter can be used, x is the most common by far. This usage can be traced back to the Arabic word ?ay 'thing' which was spelled with an initial x in Old Spanish or (according to other sources) an abbreviation of Latin causa which was the translation of Arabic š.
    • x is the usual symbol for the variable represented on the horizontal axis (ordinate) in analytic geometry.
    • x means 10 in Roman numbers
  • In military science, X is the US Navy hull classification symbol for Submersible Craft.
  • In photography X denotes exact time in flash synchronization.
  • In physics, the X-ray is a form of electromagnetic radiation.
  • In popular music,
    • X is the name of a Los Angeles punk rock band (see X (US band)).
    • X is the name of an Australian punk rock band (see X (Australian band)).
    • X was the initial name of the Japanese visual kei rock band X Japan.
  • In pornography XXX relates, unsurprisingly, to sex.
  • As the first letter of a postal code,
    • In Canada, X stands for Nunavut and the Northwest Territories.
  • In U.S. politics, X is the pseudonym of the person who blew the whistle on the Watergate crisis.
  • In U.S. public policy, X is the author (George F. Kennan) of the X article published in Foreign Affairs.
  • In Roman numerals, X denotes ten.
  • In semiotics, an X over something denotes elimination, prohibition or erasure.
  • In sociology X denotes Generation X.
  • X is a symbol worn on the hand to denote that someone is straight edge. It is also frequently tattooed on other parts of the body, or worn on clothing, sometimes in triplicate (XXX). Straight-edgers frequently also append Xs to their names, i.e. write their names with Xs, such that 'Jack' would be written XjackX. Straight edge itself is comonly abbreviated to 'sxe' (S.E. with an X in the middle).
  • In superhero comic books, an X usually denotes a connection to the popular X-Men franchise, especially when used as a prefix.
  • In treasure-hunting X is used to designate the location of treasure, i.e. X marks the spot.
  • In video games, X is the name of the main character in the Mega Man spinoff, Mega Man X.
  • X is a rollercoaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain.
  • X is a Japanese manga title produced by CLAMP which has also been adapted into a 1996 feature film and a 2001 television series. It is also known by the title X/1999.

This page about X includes information from a Wikipedia article.
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The letter X is spoken as X-ray in the NATO phonetic alphabet. Diet can refer to several things:. No words in the Basic English vocabulary begin with X, but it occurs in words beginning with other letters. Dietsch on the subject of linguistics or Dutch history. The letter X is not used in the Italian language, except for words borrowed from other languages, or names of foreigners. Finland - The Diet of Finland, Suomen valtiopäivät or Finlands Lantdag. It is also controversial whether Psi, Chi (Khi) and Xi are Greek inventions or whether they are ultimately of Semitic origin. Poland - The Polish parliament, Sejm.

Some scholars claim that Latin X is not identical with Greek Χ. Japan - The Diet of Japan, Kokkai (国会). Only in Kurdish, Azeri, Uzbek, Tatar and Lojban as well as the IPA and SAMPA (the latter is used here) is X pronounced [x] (as in German Bach). These countries include:

    . But the Etruscans took over X from older Western Greek, therefore, it stood for /ks/ in Etruscan and /ks/ and /gs/ [gz] in Latin. In particular, for some countries, the legislative branch of the country's government is known in English as the Diet. In the end, Chi was standardized as /k_h/ (/x/ in Modern Greek) as well as Xi for /ks/. Diet as a formal deliberative assembly.

    /ks/ was in Ancient Greece written as Chi 'Χ' (Western Greek) or Xi 'Ξ' (Eastern Greek). diet cola. It is also the form of St Andrew's Cross. Diet as an adjective for foods appropriate for such a diet, e.g. X is the twenty-fourth letter of the Latin alphabet. Dieting, the deliberate selection of food to control body weight or nutrient intake.

      .
      . See also: Dietary supplement.
        .

        It is also known by the title X/1999. The nutritional diet of an organism or group. X is a Japanese manga title produced by CLAMP which has also been adapted into a 1996 feature film and a 2001 television series. X is a rollercoaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain. In video games, X is the name of the main character in the Mega Man spinoff, Mega Man X.

        X marks the spot. In treasure-hunting X is used to designate the location of treasure, i.e. In superhero comic books, an X usually denotes a connection to the popular X-Men franchise, especially when used as a prefix. with an X in the middle).

        Straight edge itself is comonly abbreviated to 'sxe' (S.E. write their names with Xs, such that 'Jack' would be written XjackX. Straight-edgers frequently also append Xs to their names, i.e. It is also frequently tattooed on other parts of the body, or worn on clothing, sometimes in triplicate (XXX).

        X is a symbol worn on the hand to denote that someone is straight edge. In sociology X denotes Generation X. In semiotics, an X over something denotes elimination, prohibition or erasure. In Roman numerals, X denotes ten.

        Kennan) of the X article published in Foreign Affairs. public policy, X is the author (George F. In U.S. politics, X is the pseudonym of the person who blew the whistle on the Watergate crisis.

        In U.S. In Canada, X stands for Nunavut and the Northwest Territories. As the first letter of a postal code,

          . In pornography XXX relates, unsurprisingly, to sex.

          X was the initial name of the Japanese visual kei rock band X Japan. X is the name of an Australian punk rock band (see X (Australian band)). X is the name of a Los Angeles punk rock band (see X (US band)). In popular music,

            .

            In physics, the X-ray is a form of electromagnetic radiation. In photography X denotes exact time in flash synchronization. In military science, X is the US Navy hull classification symbol for Submersible Craft. x means 10 in Roman numbers.

            x is the usual symbol for the variable represented on the horizontal axis (ordinate) in analytic geometry. This usage can be traced back to the Arabic word ?ay 'thing' which was spelled with an initial x in Old Spanish or (according to other sources) an abbreviation of Latin causa which was the translation of Arabic š. Even though any letter can be used, x is the most common by far. x commonly represents an unknown variable.

            In mathematics,

              . In gender XX denotes female in the XY sex-determination system. In genetics X denotes the X chromosome.
                . In games, X is representation for a cross in games like tic tac toe (naughts and crosses).

                In financial securities, X is the stock symbol for United States Steel Corporation. The X-Files was a popular 1990s American science fiction television series. X is the name of a 1928 German film; see X (film). Australia retains the X rating.

                The UK replaced the X rating with the 18 certificate. X is a rating given to films suitable for an adult-only audience; see X-rated. NC-17 has replaced the X rating in the US. In film

                  . In American slang, X is often used as an abbreviation of ecstasy (MDMA), a synthetic drug.

                  X also serves as other abbreviations, such as Xtal (Crystal), reXn (reaction), Xlation (translation), and SXSW (South by Southwest Festival). X is an abbreviation for cross in words like Xing (crossing), or to sign with a cross (often for illiteracy). (See Hugs and Kisses.). X is a symbol for a kiss, as in love notes.

                  X is an abbreviation for Christ, as in Xmas (Christmas), X(t)ian (Christian), and Xianity (Christianity). In English,

                    . In electrical engineering, X is the symbol for reactance. In French education, X is a nickname for the École Polytechnique.

                    x is the repetition operator in Perl programming language. X is used as an abbreviation for the Apple operating system Mac OS X. The data transfer speed for 1X CDs is 153,600 bytes/second and one for 1X DVDs is 1,385,000 bytes/second (approximately 9.02 times faster). This usage is a corruption of the multiplication symbol ×.

                    X is often used as a symbol of multiplication, as in denoting the spin (and, later, transfer) speed of CDs and DVDs compared to an original standard speed. X is the name of a free graphical windowing system developed at MIT and standard on Unix and Linux; see X Window System. In computing:

                      . In clothing X is used as an abbreviation for extra, such as XXL for extra-extra-large or XM for extra-medium.

                      In cabalistic philosophy X references both birth and death. In beverages, X is a symbol for an alcoholic proof of 50; multiple Xes indicate multiples of 50. In astronomy, Planet X is a hypothetical planet in the Solar System beyond the orbit of Pluto. In art X alludes to the infinite joy of creation.

                      In anime, X is the title of a series based on the manga X/1999 (see X (anime)). It is also a prefix to experimental types of US military aircraft, for instance, the XB-70. In aeronautics, X is the designation given to an experimental aircraft of the US government, for instance, the X-1 rocketplane that first broke the sound barrier. Members of the Nation of Islam change their surnames to "X" to symbolize that their African names were lost in slavery, an example is Malcolm X.

                      In a general sense, X represents an unknown or secret, as in project X or mister X.