What it means
The first letter of the Greek alphabet. Lower-case α is one of the most used symbols in science: an angle, a significance level, a learning rate or a coefficient. The capital looks exactly like a Latin A and is almost never used on its own.
Read aloud in real formulas
α = 0.05
Aethel says
alpha equals 0.05
the significance level of a test
α + β + γ = 180°
Aethel says
alpha plus beta plus gamma equals 180 degrees
the angles of a triangle
α ≈ 1/137
Aethel says
alpha is approximately 1 over 137
the fine-structure constant
Typing it
- LaTeX
- \alpha (capital: A)
- Unicode
- U+03B1, U+0391
Questions
How do you pronounce alpha (α)?
It is said “alpha”, roughly AL-fuh.
What does α mean in maths?
The first letter of the Greek alphabet. Lower-case α is one of the most used symbols in science: an angle, a significance level, a learning rate or a coefficient. The capital looks exactly like a Latin A and is almost never used on its own.
How do you type α?
In LaTeX, write \alpha (capital: A). Its Unicode code point is U+03B1, U+0391.