Word Joiner U+2060

Copy the word joiner (U+2060), an invisible character that stops a line break without adding space. It replaces U+FEFF as the zero-width no-break.

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⁠

Codepoint: U+2060
Decimal: 8288
HTML: ⁠
CSS: \2060
JS: \u2060
URL: %E2%81%A0
UTF-8: E2 81 A0
Category: Format (Cf)
Block: General Punctuation

The word joiner (U+2060) is a zero-width invisible character that prevents a line break at its position. It is the opposite of the zero-width space: ZWSP says "you can break the line here," word joiner says "you must NOT break the line here."

Think of it as a non-breaking space with no width. Unicode 3.2 added it to take over the inline no-break job from the byte order mark (U+FEFF), which now only marks file encoding.

Common Uses

Number and unit. 100[WJ]% keeps "100%" on one line with no gap.
Inline code. Function names and expressions in documentation won't break mid-word.
Compound terms. Technical terms, product names and abbreviations stay whole.
Orphaned punctuation. A colon, semicolon or other mark won't start a new line.
Responsive layouts. CSS white-space: nowrap blocks every break in an element. Word joiner works per character.

How to Type

Platform	Method
Windows	No keyboard shortcut. Copy from this page, or in Microsoft Word type `2060` then press Alt+X.
macOS	No keyboard shortcut. Copy from this page.
Linux	Ctrl+Shift+U, type `2060`, press Enter.
HTML	Type `⁠` or `⁠`.
JavaScript	Use `\u2060` in strings.
CSS	Use `content: '\2060';` but rarely needed in CSS.

Word Joiner vs Non-Breaking Space

Feature	Word Joiner (U+2060)	Non-Breaking Space (U+00A0)
Prevents line break?	Yes	Yes
Has visible width?	No (zero width)	Yes (same as regular space)
Adds space between words?	No	Yes
HTML entity	`⁠`	` `
Use when	You want no-break with no gap	You want no-break with a visible space

Example

Dr. Smith displays "Dr. Smith" on one line. Usually what you want.
Dr.[WJ]Smith displays "Dr.Smith". Usually wrong.
100[WJ]% displays "100%" with no gap. Correct.
100 % displays "100 %". Depends on your style guide.

The Zero-Width Character Family

Character	Line break?	Joining?	Purpose
Zero-Width Space (U+200B)	Allows break	None	"Break here if needed"
Word Joiner (U+2060)	Prevents break	None	"Never break here"
Zero-Width Non-Joiner (U+200C)	No effect	Prevents joining	"Don't connect these letters"
Zero-Width Joiner (U+200D)	No effect	Forces joining	"Connect these characters"

Technical Details

Unicode category: Cf (Format).
Width: Zero. No visible glyph.
Line breaking: Prevents line breaks (class WJ in the Unicode Line Breaking Algorithm).
Word breaking: Does not affect word boundaries.
Bidirectional class: BN (Boundary Neutral). Does not affect text direction.
History: Introduced in Unicode 3.2 (2002) to replace U+FEFF as an inline zero-width no-break space.

In code:

// JavaScript: detect word joinertext.includes('\u2060')
// JavaScript: remove word joinerstext.replace(/\u2060/g, '')
// JavaScript: insert word joiner between a number and unit`${value}\u2060${unit}`
// HTML: keep "100%" from breaking100&#8288;%

// JavaScript: detect word joinertext.includes('\u2060')
// JavaScript: remove word joinerstext.replace(/\u2060/g, '')
// JavaScript: insert word joiner between a number and unit`${value}\u2060${unit}`
// HTML: keep "100%" from breaking100&#8288;%

When to Use CSS Instead

On the web, CSS is usually easier to maintain:

css

/* Prevent all line breaks in an element */.no-break { white-space: nowrap; }
/* Prevent breaks between specific elements */.unit { display: inline-block; } /* inline-block won't break internally */

/* Prevent all line breaks in an element */.no-break { white-space: nowrap; }
/* Prevent breaks between specific elements */.unit { display: inline-block; } /* inline-block won't break internally */

Use word joiner for plain text, for per-character control CSS can't give, for output without CSS (emails, PDFs, plain text files), and for internationalized text where CSS white-space isn't precise enough.

Security Considerations

Word joiner is low-risk. It does not affect text direction or enable bidirectional override attacks. Two minor concerns:

String comparison. Strings that look identical may differ by a word joiner and fail to match.
Length calculation. It adds to the code point count without visible length, which could in theory bypass character limits.

Quick Reference

I want to...	Use this	Character
Allow a line break with no visible mark	Zero-Width Space	U+200B
Allow a line break with a visible hyphen	Soft Hyphen	U+00AD
Prevent a line break with a visible space	Non-Breaking Space	U+00A0
Prevent a line break with no visible space	Word Joiner	U+2060

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between word joiner and non-breaking space?

Both prevent line breaks. Non-breaking space (U+00A0) also adds a visible space between words. Word joiner (U+2060) adds no space at all. Use word joiner when you need no-break behavior with no gap.

What is the difference between word joiner and zero-width space?

They are opposites. Zero-width space (U+200B) allows a line to break at its position. Word joiner (U+2060) prevents a break there. Both are invisible and zero-width, but they have opposite effects on text wrapping.

Why was word joiner created?

The byte order mark (U+FEFF) once had two jobs: marking encoding at the start of files and acting as an inline zero-width no-break space. Unicode 3.2 split these roles and created word joiner (U+2060) for the inline no-break job.

When should I use word joiner?

Use word joiner to keep two elements on the same line without adding visible space. Examples: between a number and its unit symbol, between parts of a code snippet, or anywhere a line break would confuse the reader.

Related Characters

Zero-Width SpaceU+200BNon-Breaking SpaceU+00A0Byte Order MarkU+FEFFZero-Width JoinerU+200DZero-Width Non-JoinerU+200CSoft HyphenU+00AD

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