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This is similar to a palindrome but, instead of a word/sentence that reads the same forwards and backward, is there a word for words/sentences that read the same right side up and upside-down?

See picture below where the word "yeah" is written in cursive:

Matthew Read
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Remi
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    It's a calligraphic wordmark (probably) with twofold rotational symmetry. That's probably not good enough for you, though! You might have better luck on the graphic design SE. I've seen these before - and even drawn them - but I can't think of any specific examples. (The ABBA logotype is similar but has reflection symmetry, not rotational.) – tmgr Oct 07 '18 at 20:51
  • Possibly helpful - https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/224231/terminology-for-words-that-are-the-same-backwards-and-forwards-upside-down-or-r – Dan Oct 07 '18 at 21:23

3 Answers3

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That is called an ambigram. It is a typographical design that can be read in more than one direction.

ambigram noun

A typographical design consisting of text modified in such a way that it can be read in multiple orientations, as in mirror image, inverted, or when rotated.

(ODO)

Famously (?) used in Dan Brown's Angels and Demons.

Dog Lover
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Matt E. Эллен
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  • The example in the question reads the same whether it's right way up or upside down (relative to the rest of the text). Is that a requirement for an ambigram? It's been years since I read Angels and Demons, but my vague recollection is that each one was two different words depending on which way you viewed it (though maybe I recall incorrectly). The definition you've provided also seems ambiguous on that point. – Anthony Grist Oct 08 '18 at 15:47
  • @AnthonyGrist It's not a requirement as far as I know, though it is common. – Hearth Oct 08 '18 at 15:51
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    I think you answered about reading the word rotated 180 degrees (as shown by Avrumi). But what about a word such as "DIOXIDE", which means the same thing when actually flipped upside down (as described by Avrumi)? – KlaymenDK Oct 08 '18 at 22:48
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    @KlaymenDK The definition includes "mirror image", so I think that's the same. – Matt E. Эллен Oct 08 '18 at 22:56
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    @AnthonyGrist The Dan Brown case was the word Illuminati written as an ambigram, if memory serves (and some nonsense about how people had tried in vain for centuries to figure out how to write that word as an ambigram when in fact any ten-year-old could do it in fifteen minutes). It was the same word from both ‘ends’. – Janus Bahs Jacquet Oct 08 '18 at 23:22
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    @JanusBahsJacquet My memory - which could easily be wrong, or confused with a different book - was that it was several different ambigrams. Maybe it was just the same word multiple times, or several different attempts to make the same word an ambigram. I feel like I'm going to end up having to read the book, and I really don't want to... – Anthony Grist Oct 09 '18 at 09:32
  • @AnthonyGrist There were several ambigrams, each different from the others, and they all exhibited 180-degree rotational symmetry (they read the same upside-down and upside-up). – Upper_Case Oct 09 '18 at 14:39
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It is an AMBIGRAM design on which a word/sentence that has the same meaning can be viewed or interpreted from a different directions or in different perspectives.

Saldua Julybear
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    Please read the other answers before posting your own. Ambigram has already been posted as an answer, plus it is properly supported with citations. – Phil Sweet Oct 08 '18 at 01:07
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    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambigram you may refer to the link – Saldua Julybear Oct 08 '18 at 02:43
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    This is a duplicate answer. It does not provide any detail nor adds any new information compared to the older answer which was posted three hours earlier. – Mari-Lou A Oct 08 '18 at 05:56
  • IF you had also provided another example of an ambigram (why the caps?) IN your answer but NOT in a comment that I would have upvoted – Mari-Lou A Oct 08 '18 at 06:02
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    @SalduaJulybear Your effort is appreciated. To show that yours is the right answer, it should include explanation, context, and supporting facts. For example, you could offer evidence such as the definition from a good online dictionary. You could contrast your answer with other answers. Whatever would make this the right answer, instead of an opinion. This is what makes answers useful – to the asker, and to future visitors. See: “Real questions have answers, not items or ideas or opinions”. – MetaEd Oct 08 '18 at 16:53
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    To get started, just use the [edit] link under your answer. – MetaEd Oct 08 '18 at 16:54
  • Good advice (“If you had also provided another example” and “it should include explanation, context, and supporting facts”) falls on deaf ears. I have cast my vote to delete this answer. I'll be happy to reverse the downvote and the deletion process if you do something to improve, what is for all intents and purposes, a duplicate answer. – Mari-Lou A Oct 09 '18 at 08:48
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Another answer is symmetric, although that’s a broader term. More specific: that it has rotational symmetry. Even more specific: symmetric under a 180° rotation, or it has 180° rotational symmetry. A mathematician might say that it has the symmetries of a parallelogram.

Davislor
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