How do I escape a backtick ` within in-line code in Markdown?

Question

How do I escape a backtick ` within a code block?

This is probably a duplicate, since I'm sure it's a common concern, but I can't find a question that addresses this specifically.

How do I write List'1 with the "1" character still in the code-text format?

Answer 1

Use four spaces before your code:

List`1

Or use double backticks: ``List`1`` produces List`1.

See http://daringfireball.net/projects/markdown/syntax, linked to from the formatting question box.

Note: Putting a single space on each side of the text will be necessary if you want to have a backtick at the beginning or the end of your code, e.g., foo`, `foo, or just `. This will keep it from consuming the first two closing backticks instead of the final two closing backticks.

`` foo` `` produces foo`
`` `foo `` produces `foo
`` ` `` produces single backtick `

You can put the space just on the side ending with a backtick, but then that space might get included in the in-line code (in GitHub Flavoured Markdown for example) which is why using a single space on each side of the code is generally preferred.

If you need to show extra backticks, enclose them with a higher number of them:

``` ``two backticks`` ``` produces ``two backticks``

Answer 2

For GitHub, like for displaying a MySQL `table_name`, in regular text use \` (backslash backtick).

For showing backticks inside inline codeblocks `table_name`, use double backticks with extra spaces `` `table_name` `` around the inner single backticks.

To show the previous example explanation in an inline codeblock: `` `table_name` ``, surround the whole in three backticks with extra spaces, e.g. ``` `` `table_name` `` ```

(head a splode)

Answer 3

You can use an extra backtick at the start and end to make sure it escapes correctly:

``List`1``

When inline it will display as List`1.

Markdown provides backslash escapes for the following characters:

\   backslash
`   backtick
*   asterisk
_   underscore
{}  curly braces
[]  square brackets
()  parentheses
#   hash mark
+   plus sign
-   minus sign (hyphen)
.   dot
!   exclamation mark

---

for example, this:

## \\ \` \* \_ \{ \} \[ \] \( \) \# \+ \- \. \!

returns:

\ ` * _ { } [ ] ( ) # + - . !

Escaped codeblock, italics, bold, link, headings and list:

`not codeblock`, *not italics*, **not bold**, [not link](http://www.google.com)

# not h1

## not h2

### not h3

+ not ul

- not ul

Answer 4

For fenced code blocks, the prescription is more backticks.

This Markdown

````
```
Example of Markdown syntax for fenced code block with triple back ticks
```
````

will be rendered like this

```
Example of Markdown syntax for fenced code block with triple back ticks
```

Answer 5

Use <code> and HTML character entities instead. This is especially useful in situations where your code is already wrapping things in backticks (e.g., in Swift, enum { case `true` = 1 }).

HTML gives you three ways to specify a character entity for a backtick: `, `, & `.  The choice is yours.

The way to accomplish the example with this technique would be <code>List&grave;1</code>, resulting in List`1.  The markdown for List`List`1 would just be <code>List&grave;List&grave;1</code>.  It's a little messy, but not unbearable if you're used to reading/writing HTML.

While more cumbersome than normal Markdown, this approach is also much more compatible.  Some Markdown parsers don't like backslash-escapes; some will created nested code spans instead of working like @Brian's example; others will do other weird things; but the HTML approach will only fail if the Markdown parser has HTML turned completely off (which is exceedingly rare).

The general approach I take is “If I can't do it with Markdown, or if doing it in Markdown is a complicated mess of repeated symbols and tricks, just drop down to HTML for that use-case.”

---

Note that on SE sites, this only works in questions & answers, not comments (unfortunately! and somewhat negating my “exceedingly rate” analysis above!); HTML entities are displayed as plaintext in comments.

Answer 6

It's different in posts and in comments.

For posts

1.

`` ` ``

Result (only for posts, not valid in comments): `

2.

<code>\`</code>

Result (only for posts, not valid in comments): `

For comments

`\``

Result (only for comments, not valid in posts): ```