U+231B
Hourglass empty⌛
Hourglass empty is a color emoji character from the Unicode Miscellaneous Technical block, listed here under Technical & UI, Time & Clocks and Office & Objects. Copy it with one click, or use the hex, octal, decimal and HTML entity codes below to embed it in web pages, code, and documents. It is often searched for as "wait", "time", "sand", "timer".
Quick facts
- Unicode
- U+231B
- Decimal
- 8987
- Hex
- 0x231B
- Octal
- 0o21433
Unicode identity
| Format | Value | Copy |
|---|---|---|
| Code pointOfficial Unicode notation | U+231B | |
| Official nameUnicodeData.txt, Unicode 18.0.0 | HOURGLASS | |
| DecimalBase 10 | 8987 | |
| HexadecimalBase 16 | 0x231B | |
| OctalBase 8 | 0o21433 | |
| BinaryBase 2 | 0010001100011011 | |
| General categorySymbol, other | So | |
| Unicode blockU+2300–U+23FF | Miscellaneous Technical | |
| Plane | Basic Multilingual Plane (BMP, Plane 0) |
HTML & CSS
| Format | Value | Copy |
|---|---|---|
| HTML entity (decimal) | ⌛ | |
| HTML entity (hex) | ⌛ | |
| CSS content escapeUse inside content: "…" | \231B | |
| URL encodedPercent-encoded UTF-8 | %E2%8C%9B |
Programming languages
| Format | Value | Copy |
|---|---|---|
| JavaScript / TypeScript | \u231B | |
| JSONUTF-16 surrogate pairs | \u231B | |
| Python | \u231B | |
| Java / C# / Kotlin | \u231B |
Byte encodings
| Format | Value | Copy |
|---|---|---|
| UTF-83 bytes | E2 8C 9B | |
| UTF-16 (BE) | 231B | |
| UTF-32 (BE) | 0000231B |
How to type Hourglass empty
Windows
Hold Alt and type +231B with the hex numeric keypad option enabled, or type 231B then press Alt+X in Word and most Office apps.
macOS
Enable the Unicode Hex Input keyboard, hold Option, and type 231B. Or open Character Viewer (Control+Command+Space) and search "Hourglass empty".
Linux
Press Ctrl+Shift+U, type 231b, then press Space or Enter in GTK apps. IBus and most terminals support the same sequence.
HTML, CSS & code
Paste the character directly, or use the escapes above: ⌛ in HTML, \231B in CSS, and \u231B in JavaScript.
Official Unicode reference
- Character name
- HOURGLASS
- Block
- Miscellaneous Technical (U+2300–U+23FF)
- General category
- So — Symbol, other
Data from the Unicode Character Database, version 18.0.0. See the official code chart for the Miscellaneous Technical block: U2300.pdf (PDF, unicode.org).
Frequently asked questions
How do I copy the Hourglass empty symbol?
Click the Copy button at the top of this page, or select ⌛ and press Ctrl+C (Cmd+C on Mac). It is plain Unicode text, so it pastes into documents, chats, code, and design tools.
What is the Unicode code point for Hourglass empty?
Hourglass empty is U+231B (decimal 8987, hexadecimal 0x231B, octal 0o21433). It lives in the Miscellaneous Technical block (U+2300–U+23FF) of the Basic Multilingual Plane (BMP, Plane 0).
What is the official Unicode name of Hourglass empty?
The Unicode Standard (version 18.0.0) names this character "HOURGLASS". Its General_Category is So (Symbol, other).
What is the HTML code for Hourglass empty?
Use ⌛ or ⌛. In CSS, use content: "\231B".
How do I type Hourglass empty in code?
JavaScript: "\u231B". Python: "\u231B". JSON and Java: "\u231B". The UTF-8 byte sequence is E2 8C 9B.
Is Hourglass empty an emoji?
Yes. Hourglass empty has Emoji_Presentation in Unicode, so most platforms render it as a full-color emoji by default. Append U+FE0E to force a monochrome text glyph.