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I don't know which shortened form of "10 or more" is more appropriate, is it 10+ or 10+ (i.e. with the plus sign as superscript). What do you think?

Extra question, when do we use superscript in English,well, aside from ordinal numbers and references?

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  • Neither variant has currency in formal official writing that I'm aware of. 10+, "ten plus" is understood in informal shorthand, chat and the like. What context do you have in mind? Super- and subscript are imitations of hand-written shorthand that has little connection to chat shorthand, probably only used by geeks. +1 "plus one" has become an idiom for "you and and one more"; "ten plus" doesn't strike me as a probable verbal idiom, rather a purely technical symbolism. 10 to the power of plus is effectively 10x, the multiplicative series of ten, in some algebraic notation.
    – vectory
    Sep 6, 2019 at 18:40
  • >=10 is what I’d use as shorthand.
    – Xanne
    Sep 6, 2019 at 18:51
  • "10+" is shorthand for "ten plus," not "10 or more." That said, "10+" is always what you'd write to mean that, never superscript. Sep 7, 2019 at 0:22

2 Answers 2

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10+ is sometimes used as a shorthand for 10 or more. Do not superscript the +.

A superscript + is normally only used for positively charged ions or particles: H+ for hydrogen ions, Na+ for natrium ions, K+ for potassium ions, Zn2+ for zinc ions, H3O+ for hydronium ions, NH4+ for ammonium ions, e+ for positrons, μ+ for antimuons.

Otherwise, superscripts are used:

  • in mathematics, for exponents: 106 is a million, 1 m2 is a squared metre
  • for footnotes
  • for the abbreviations TM (trade mark) and SM (service mark) following a trade mark or a service mark
  • for digits behind the decimal point or comma: $1.50
  • for the final letters of ordinals: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th
  • for the final letters of abbreviations that contain the first and final letters: Mlle for mademoiselle, Mr for monsieur or mister, Dr for doctor

Modern style guides advise against the use of superscripts in the last three points.

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I have not seen that usage of 10+ with a superscript as 10+.

Wikipedia says in Subscript and superscript

In English, most nontechnical use of superiors is archaic.

although I do still see (and sometimes use) superscript for ordinals like 10th.

But it comes down to a matter of preferred style.

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