Words & Sentences

In Get Started you learned that / combines characters into words and // separates words in a sentence. This page covers the full composition system: words, sentences, word-level indicators, the head glyph algorithm, and punctuation.

Separators Overview

Pattern: single = character level, double = word level.

Separator	Scope	Purpose	Example
;	Within a character	Combine parts or attach indicator	B431;B81
/	Within a word	Combine characters	B313/B1103
;;	On a word	Attach indicator to head glyph	B313/B1103;;B81
//	Between words	Separate words	B313//B431

Words: The / Separator

Use / to combine characters into a word:

feeling + understanding = empathy

Input:

B313/B1103

person + love = sweetheart, lover

Input:

B513/B431

feeling + up = happiness

Input:

B313/B678

Each character maintains standard spacing within the word. This spacing can be customized. See the Spacing guide.

Sentences: The // Separator

Use // to separate words in a sentence:

Two words separated by space

Input:

B313/B1103//B431

I love Blissymbolics.

Input:

B513/B10//B431;B81//B414/B167//B4

I want to listen to music.

Input:

B513/B10//B313;B81/B319//B278;B81//B278/B462//B4

• B513/B10: person + one = I, me
• B313;B81/B319: feeling + action indicator + fire = to want
• B278;B81: ear, hearing + action indicator = to hear, to listen
• B278/B462: ear, hearing + musical note = music
• B4: period

Extended Spacing with ///

Use /// to insert an additional word space. Each extra / adds another space:

Extra space before the last word

Input:

B313//B431///B1103

This is useful for visual grouping or creating deliberate pauses in a sentence. See the Spacing guide for the exact unit values.

Indicators and the Head Glyph

Indicators modify grammatical function. In a multi-character word, an indicator must attach to a specific character: the head glyph.

Bliss literature often uses the term classifier for the conceptual core of a compound word. In some descriptions, the term is also used for the character that receives the indicator, even when that character alone does not represent the full core concept.

To avoid this ambiguity, this documentation distinguishes the two levels. The classifier refers to the conceptual core of the compound, while the head glyph is the single character that receives the indicator.

Some indicators operate at the character level. For example, the thing indicator always targets a specific character regardless of word structure. Most indicators, however, target the head glyph when applied to a word.

Indicators can be attached at two levels: to a specific character with ;, or to the head glyph with ;;.

Character-Level Indicators (;)

Use ; to attach an indicator to one specific character:

love + action indicator = to love

Input:

B431;B81

B81 on B431 (second character)

Input:

B313/B431;B81

B81 on B431 (first character)

Input:

B431;B81/B313

You choose exactly which character gets the indicator.

Word-Level Indicators (;;)

Use ;; to attach an indicator to the head glyph of the word:

feeling + understanding + action indicator = to empathize (head: feeling)

Input:

B313/B1103;;B81

feeling + up + action indicator = to rejoice (head: feeling)

Input:

B313/B678;;B81

The head glyph is determined automatically. You don't need to know which character is the head. The library figures it out using the rules below.

When to Use Each

Use ; when you want the indicator on a specific character, or when working with single characters.

Use ;; when composing multi-character words and you want the indicator to follow Bliss grammar rules.

The Head Glyph Algorithm

When you use ;;, the library determines which character is the head glyph. It uses three rules in order:

1. Explicit marker (^): Override for rare edge cases*: B313^/B1103;;B81
2. Exclusion heuristics: Certain characters are never heads (see below)
3. Default: The first non-excluded character is the head

* Could be useful in rare cases for predefined words if the heuristic would pick the wrong head glyph. For manually composed words, you can attach the indicator directly with ; instead.

What Gets Excluded

The following types of concepts are skipped from the start of the word when finding the head glyph:

Category	What it includes	Why excluded
Structural markers	combine marker	Technical, not semantic
Scalar operators	intensity, more, most	Modify degree, not meaning
Identity operators	not, opposite	Negate or invert the concept
Concept transformers	similar to, looks like, sounds like	Compare or relate concepts
Relational operators	on, in, from, to, before, after, through, etc.	Prepositions that relate concepts
Determiners	a, the	Specify definiteness, not meaning
Quantifiers	all, many, numbers (0-9), half, etc.	Quantity modifiers

See the Head Glyph Exclusions reference for the complete list.

opposite + heat + description indicator = cold (head: heat)

Input:

B486/B378;;B86

many + house + plural indicator = villages (head: house)

Input:

B368/B392;;B99

without + sound + description indicator = silent (head: sound)

Input:

B449/B608;;B86

most + happiness + description indicator = happiest (head: feeling)

Input:

B968/B313/B678;;B86

In each case, the excluded character is skipped and the indicator appears on the head glyph.

Punctuation

Blissymbolics has standard punctuation characters:

Code	Symbol	Usage
B4	Period	End of statement
B5	Comma	Pause, list separator
B3	Question mark	Questions
B1	Exclamation mark	Emphasis

Statement with period

Input:

B313/B1103//B4

Question

Input:

B313/B1103//B3

Exclamation

Input:

B313/B1103//B1

Certain punctuation characters automatically receive tighter spacing. The library inserts a quarter space (QSP) before them instead of the normal three-quarter space (TSP), pulling them closer to the preceding word.

Similarly, digits are automatically kerned to sit closer together, halving the normal character spacing between them.

See the Spacing guide for full details on automatic and manual spacing control.