How to Insert a Tilde Symbol (~) in LaTeX

You can write a tilde (sometimes called “twiddle”) in a LaTeX document by using \(\sim \) or $\sim$ (sim stands for similar). As an alternative you can use \texttildelow from thetextcomp package.

\documentclass{article}
\begin{document}
This is a Text containing a tilde symbol $\sim$. It is done using an inline equation.
\end{document}

If you want to write a letter with a tilde on top of the letter, you can write $\tilde{x}$. In this example the tilde will be displayed above the “x”. If you want more then one letter below the tilde you can use $\widetilde{xyz}$.

You can also use the tilde symbol in math mode, this works for inline math as well as block math:

\documentclass{article}
\begin{document}

Let's look at an example where we use the tilde in a statement about the estimated value of pi:
\begin{equation}
\pi \sim 3
\end{equation}

\end{document}

Inserting a Tilde Symbol Using MonsterWriter

To write a tilde in MonsterWriter simply place the caret into the text where you need to insert the tilde. Press cmd+i on MacOS or ctrl+i if you run on Windows. Click on the small square root symbol of the context menu. Now paste \sim or \tilde{x} or \widetilde{xyz} into the text field for equations.

Similar Symbols

Approximately Equal in LaTeX

There is an extra command in LaTeX for the Approximately Equal sign which is represented by a tilded equal sign. To make use of it write $a \approx b$ to say a is approximately equal b.