![]() Hyphens are used in compound adjectives to connect two or more words together to create a single adjective that modifies a noun. Similar to the en dash, the em dash is so named for being the length of the letter “m.” The Hyphen The em dash (-) is the longest of the three marks and is used to create a strong break in a sentence, often to indicate a change in tone or thought, such as “I went to the concert-although I really didn’t want to-just to make my partner happy.” The en dash was originally named for being the width of the letter “n,” though in many fonts today, this may not be entirely accurate. The en dash (–) is slightly longer than a hyphen and is used to indicate a range, a tally, or a connection between two things, such as “November 9–12,” “the vote was 48–52,” or “the New York–London flight.” For example, “short-term,” or “hard-and fast.” Key TakeawaysĪ hyphen (-) is a short punctuation mark used to connect two or more words together, creating compound words. In this article, we explain ‘em all - hyphens, en dashes, and em dashes - with examples of each. And did you know that there are two kinds of dash? That’s right, there are en dashes and em dashes. For details, contact us.The hyphen and the dash are commonly confused and misunderstood punctuation marks. We design and build custom mobile websites. Some blog platforms may automatically convert a double hyphen to an em dash.Īnd then your hyphens, en dashes and em dashes will all be in their proper places, and your readers won’t stumble over your words. Not too many people will quibble, and there will be no loss of meaning.Īnd create a pseudo-em dash by one of two ways: leave spaces before and after a hyphen - like this, or type two consecutive hyphens-like this. Go ahead and use a hyphen instead of an en dash. Or press the Alt key while typing 0151 on the numeric keypad.īut what if you don't have a standard keyboard, or are writing a blog post, or don't want to mess with html? To produce an em dash in Word, press Ctrl-Alt-minus sign on the numeric keypad. Word automatically converts the hyphen to an en dash. If your laptop doesn't have separate numeric keys, do this: Type the word preceding the en dash, leave a space, type a hyphen, leave another space, type your next word and leave a space again. ![]() Or press the Alt key while typing 0150 on the numeric keypad. To type an en dash in Microsoft Word, press the Ctrl and minus sign keys on the numeric keypad (on a standard keyboard). ![]() The html codes for the en dash are – or – To type a hyphen in html or Microsoft Word, just press the hyphen key. How to Enter Hyphens, En Dashes and Em Dashes in HTML and Word Example: He would make a good spouse-but not for me. It's twice as long as the en dash, and is used most often in a sentence to set apart two independent but related ideas. There are other uses for it too, but these are the most frequent ones. Its purpose is to show a range, as in: Boston beat Miami 98–83.Īn en dash also shows a connection between two places, like New York–Boston corridor. Sometimes it's used to avoid doubling vowels, as in pre-empt or co-operate.Īn en dash is slightly longer than a hyphen. It is used to join two words together that express a single idea. ![]() It's the key next to the zero on a regular keyboard. How?Ī hyphen is the smallest dash available. ![]() Eventually, after reading it a couple of times, they may realize that the hyphen is standing in for an em dash.įortunately, this problem can be easily avoided, as it's fairly simple to ensure you're entering the right dash - hyphen, en or em - in your writing. Doing this makes the copy awkward and forces the reader to reread the sentence to figure out its meaning. In formal writing, however, you can't get away with using a hyphen instead of an en dash.Īnd you definitely can't use a hyphen instead of a em dash. When you use a hyphen where you should use an en dash, it's usually not a problem. Hyphens often creep into web copy in places where en dashes or em dashes belong. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |