Phantom \phantom

When to use Phantom

Reserves the size of content while making it invisible. In source, start from the exact \phantom command instead of imitating the rendered glyph with Unicode characters or manual spacing. This keeps the expression editable and gives the renderer enough structure to apply mathematical spacing correctly.

Syntax

\phantom

The documented syntax belongs to Core LaTeX. Keep every required argument, brace pair, and environment boundary intact when moving the command between an editor, Markdown processor, notebook, or publishing system.

Example

a+\phantom{b}+c

Rendered output

reserved invisible width

Copy and compatibility checks

• Copy \phantom exactly; changing its case or removing a leading backslash can turn it into plain text.
• Confirm that the destination loads Core LaTeX before relying on this command.
• Render the example once, then inspect grouping, limits, scripts, and spacing before publishing.