See < > for uses of these symbols enclosing other characters.
(editorial mark) The diple, a mark in the left margin used to note important passages in a text, such as biblical quotations. Often used with < in the right margin. (See > <.) With the advent of moveable type, these marks were moved into the text, becoming the guillemets› ‹.
(Internetslang)Used to quote a person, especially to emphasize what was said and make fun of the person.
“i mean ubuntu is better than debian anyways, it's even the most mainstream version of desktop linux” “> ubuntu is better than debian”
(Internetslang)Used to emphasize and make fun of (what the speaker assumes is) a person’s inner thoughts.
“and so i got a mac since they have less viruses[…]” “> he thinks that macs are virus-free”
(Internetslang)Used to emphasize and make fun of a person’s actions.
“so i opened up internet explorer, went to google, and looked it up[…]” “> using internet explorer in 2020”
(Internetslang)Used for storytelling in short, fragmented statements.
>be me >decide to buy CS:GO to see why it's so popular >get instantly spawnkilled in my first game >uninstall the game and demand a refund
(Internetslang)Used to signify enjoyment or appreciation of something (over everything else), often with many repetitions of the symbol.
effort >
random hugs >>>>>
2024 August 20, Mehera Bonner, “Zoë Kravitz and Channing Tatum’s 3-Year Relationship Timeline: a Retrospective”, in Cosmopolitan[2], archived from the original on 2024-10-07:
At the swanky event, the duo is also spotted among a buncha other celebrity attendees and audience members. ¶ These two>>>>
The general practice of using > for quoting purposes dates back to its use on Usenet.
The definitions 1–4 above are often referred to as greentext, named after the green text color applied to quoted material in posts on 4chan, where this practice is common.