"=", ASCII character 61.Common names: ITU-T: equalsgetstakes.Rare: quadrathorpeINTERCAL: half-mesh.Equals is used in many languages as the assignment operator though earlier languages used ":=" ("becomes equal to") to avoid upsetting mathematicians with statements such as "x = x+1".It is also used in compounds such as "<=", ">=", "==", "/=", "!=" for various comparison operators and in C' s "+=", "*=" etc. which mimic the primitive operations of two-address code.(1995-03-29)