A tick is a mark used to indicate the concept "yes", for example "yes; this has been verified", "yes; that is the correct answer" or "yes; this [item or option] applies to me". The x mark

X mark

An x mark is a mark used to indicate the concept of negation as well as affirmation...

 is also sometimes used for this purpose (most notably on election ballot papers), but otherwise usually indicates "no", incorrectness, or failure.

As a verb, to tick (off) or to check (off) means to add such a mark. It is quite common, especially on printed forms, printed documents, and computers (see check box

Check box

In computing, a checkbox is a graphical user interface element that permits the user to make multiple selections from a number of options or to have the user answer yes or no on a simple yes/no question.Normally, checkboxes are shown on...

), for there to be squares in which to place ticks.

International differences

In some countries (e.g., Finland

Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

, Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

, Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...

, and Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

), the tick can be used as an error mark and indicates "no" rather than "yes". For example, it is common in Swedish schools for a to indicate that an answer is incorrect. This often causes confusion as to whether something that has been ticked is correct or incorrect, especially when reading English media. In Finnish, stands for väärin i.e. "wrong".

Asian replacement

In Japan, an "O Mark" (in the appearance of a circle, Unicode symbol "◯"), also known as "丸印" marujirushi, is used instead of a tick to mean "yes"; this symbol is also used in Taiwan, Korea and China. A tick placed in brackets can mean a previously used or acceptable fact or definition is being looked into, usually for the purpose of expanding academic research.

A rainbow-colored tick was also used for the Amiga

Amiga

The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...

 logo during the Commodore

Commodore International

Commodore is the commonly used name for Commodore Business Machines , the U.S.-based home computer manufacturer and electronics manufacturer headquartered in West Chester, Pennsylvania, which also housed Commodore's corporate parent company, Commodore International Limited...

era of the Amiga (1985–1994).

External links

• Fileformat.info