Hyphens and dashes are basic to stylish writing in English. Even if your readers aren't quite sure of the precise rules that govern their use, their reading will be easier and their comprehension aided by your systematic use of these punctuation marks. The Manual of Style clearly sets out how to use all three punctuation symbols: hyphens (-), en dashes (–) and em dashes (—). If these three symbols are hard to distinguish visually (- – —), you may need to change your font or browser to a standard one that renders them properly.
If you're unsure how to key in en and em dashes, please see this.
Here, we present texts in which hyphens and/or dashes may be either wrongly used or wrongly absent; in other words, some of the examples are wrong, and some are right. Remember, it's mostly a matter of:
- whether to use a symbol at all;
- if so, whether to use a hyphen or en dash; and in a few cases
- whether the symbol should be spaced or unspaced.
Em dashes are a quite separate beast, and much easier to use. Many writers don't use them at all; they use spaced en dashes – like this – instead of unspaced em dashes—like this—for their "interrupters". It's up to you.
The exercises: unfolding design. Each exercise below will present you with a portion of text in which you can correct the (mis)usage of hyphens and dashes. They are designed to be done in your head, without typing. Each one unfolds in stages that you control: first, the problem text, then a hint to help you along; then a solution; and finally an explanation.
Feedback is welcome on the talk page. For each exercise, decide on the answer in your mind before clicking on the solution. You may find this video on hyphens and dashes useful in conjunction with the exercises.
Self-help writing tutorials:
Science lab
Lady Featherstone-Morley carelessly ashed her cigarette on the butanol sample.
- Does the hyphen indicate conjunction (joining together) or disjunction (the separateness of both elements)?
So would an en dash (Lady Featherstone–Morley): there's no opposition or particular relationship between the names here, other than their coming together into someone's compound name.
An em dash (Lady Featherstone—Morley) would look really awkward.
Nice inflation
The hyphen is incorrect. Here, there's a year range, requiring an en dash, which stands for "to":
During the period 2005–07,...- If the reader is already familiar with what you're saying, you might even drop "the period".
- Many people prefer just two closing digits, as here, to the full expression ("2005–2007"). MOSNUM says that one and three closing digits are unacceptable.
Nasty inflation
From 2005–07, house prices in Capetown rose by a third.
- There's something inconsistent in the coloured text. Say it aloud.
The example is incorrect; this is what you need:
- From 2005 to 2007, house prices in Capetown rose by a third.
- The en dash stands for "to", and that's how you'll vocalise it in reading it aloud. We need both prepositions spelled out: "from ... to", not "from ... –", which is awkward.
- Either that, or recast it:
- In (or "During") the period 2005–07.
Supreme Court
Canadian weather
- The presence of the first hyphen is correct, and the absence of a hyphen from the second double adjective is incorrect.
- "Mid-" anything is usually hyphenated by convention, probably because "mid" itself isn't a whole word, yet doesn't jam into the noun nicely the way some prefixes do.
- "Low-pressure area"—the noun is "area", qualified by a double adjective. There's no such thing as a "pressure area", which could be low or high. Same for "upper-level jet stream"; it's not a "level jet stream" that happens to be the upper one of two.
- What about "the area of low pressure over the coast"—shouldn't it be "an area of low-pressure"? Nope. There's no double adjective, so no hyphen should be used: here, "low" is an adjective; "pressure" is a noun.
Coloured balls
There were two problems:
- Hyphen, not en dash. An en dash was being used to conjoin two adjectives; this job is reserved for hyphens.
- Hanging hyphen. Not just "blue", but "red" requires a hyphen to link it to the coupled word "striped"; there are two double adjectives (qualifying "balls"). The hanging hyphen added to "red" is useful for making this double compound expression neater. It's a rare case in which a hyphen is followed by a space. See MoS.
Wikipedia Prize
- Five classes–comprising more than 100 students–will compete against each other to win a prize for the best Wikipedia article on a suburb of Seattle.
- These en dashes are "interrupters", like very strong commas; they usually occur in pairs to mark off explanatory text.
The en dashes are required, but their formatting is incorrect; as interruptors, they must be spaced. The alternative is unspaced em dashes, like this:
Five classes—comprising more than 100 students—will compete against each other to win a prize for the best Wikipedia article on a suburb of Seattle.Distance
The example is incorrect: there should be no hyphen where a unit abbreviation is used.
The 16-kilometre (10 mi) distance between the centres has been a major impediment to economic development.Seats at the game
Please memorise: "No hyphen after "-ly".
Why? you might ask. Because an "-ly" word, as an adverb, always qualifies a verb (an action), so your readers will already be expecting it to be joined grammatically to the next word. It's not rocket science. This is one of the most common hyphen glitches on Wikipedia.Killing fields
- Word particle. A hyphen should be used in favour of an en dash between two items if one item (or both) is just a word particle; "Franco-" is such a particle – a mere prefix – whereas "French" would be the full-word equivalent ("the French–Prussian War", with an en dash; but by convention this is not the expression). Same for "Sino-Russian War", as opposed to "Chinese–Russian trade agreement". An acronym or abbreviation in this context would count as a full word ("the recent UK–Iceland spat over financial matters").
- Range. The em dash in the date was wrong: ranges require an en dash, and if either item has an internal space, as in both dates here, the en dash must also be spaced, on both sides. Many editors use a non-breaking space on the left side of the en dash when it's spaced ("...
July 1870 – 10 May...").
Hot town
- Minus sign. First, you may think this is an en dash, but it's a minus sign, which mathematicians are fussy about. Until early 2008, MOS used to allow en dashes for negative signs (−3.5) and subtraction operators (4 − 1 = 3); not any more. A minus sign is very subtly different from an en dash—something to do with lying higher on the line. Squint and ... you won't see it. Here they are: hyphen, minus sign, the en dash, and the em dash: - − – — . As a superior race, these mathematicians have the run of the place. Hmmmph.
- Value–unit space. Second, MOS insists on a space between all values (−25) and units (°C), with two minor exceptions (angular degrees and geographical coordinates); so it's −25 °C, not −25°C. There's no space between the minus sign and the value (never − 25)
- Keying it in. Take a look at how you should key it in: "At −25 °C, it was unseasonably warm in Yellowknife."
Hyphens and dashes are basic to stylish writing in English. Even if your readers aren't quite sure of the precise rules that govern their use, their reading will be easier and their comprehension aided by your systematic use of these punctuation marks. The Manual of Style clearly sets out how to use all three punctuation symbols: hyphens (-), en dashes (–) and em dashes (—). If these three symbols are hard to distinguish visually (- – —), you may need to change your font or browser to a standard one that renders them properly.
If you're unsure how to key in en and em dashes, please see this.
Here, we present texts in which hyphens and/or dashes may be either wrongly used or wrongly absent; in other words, some of the examples are wrong, and some are right. Remember, it's mostly a matter of:
- whether to use a symbol at all;
- if so, whether to use a hyphen or en dash; and in a few cases
- whether the symbol should be spaced or unspaced.
Em dashes are a quite separate beast, and much easier to use. Many writers don't use them at all; they use spaced en dashes – like this – instead of unspaced em dashes—like this—for their "interrupters". It's up to you.
The exercises: unfolding design. Each exercise below will present you with a portion of text in which you can correct the (mis)usage of hyphens and dashes. They are designed to be done in your head, without typing. Each one unfolds in stages that you control: first, the problem text, then a hint to help you along; then a solution; and finally an explanation.
Feedback is welcome on the talk page. For each exercise, decide on the answer in your mind before clicking on the solution. You may find this video on hyphens and dashes useful in conjunction with the exercises.
Self-help writing tutorials:
Science lab
Lady Featherstone-Morley carelessly ashed her cigarette on the butanol sample.
- Does the hyphen indicate conjunction (joining together) or disjunction (the separateness of both elements)?
So would an en dash (Lady Featherstone–Morley): there's no opposition or particular relationship between the names here, other than their coming together into someone's compound name.
An em dash (Lady Featherstone—Morley) would look really awkward.
Nice inflation
The hyphen is incorrect. Here, there's a year range, requiring an en dash, which stands for "to":
During the period 2005–07,...- If the reader is already familiar with what you're saying, you might even drop "the period".
- Many people prefer just two closing digits, as here, to the full expression ("2005–2007"). MOSNUM says that one and three closing digits are unacceptable.
Nasty inflation
From 2005–07, house prices in Capetown rose by a third.
- There's something inconsistent in the coloured text. Say it aloud.
The example is incorrect; this is what you need:
- From 2005 to 2007, house prices in Capetown rose by a third.
- The en dash stands for "to", and that's how you'll vocalise it in reading it aloud. We need both prepositions spelled out: "from ... to", not "from ... –", which is awkward.
- Either that, or recast it:
- In (or "During") the period 2005–07.
Supreme Court
Canadian weather
- The presence of the first hyphen is correct, and the absence of a hyphen from the second double adjective is incorrect.
- "Mid-" anything is usually hyphenated by convention, probably because "mid" itself isn't a whole word, yet doesn't jam into the noun nicely the way some prefixes do.
- "Low-pressure area"—the noun is "area", qualified by a double adjective. There's no such thing as a "pressure area", which could be low or high. Same for "upper-level jet stream"; it's not a "level jet stream" that happens to be the upper one of two.
- What about "the area of low pressure over the coast"—shouldn't it be "an area of low-pressure"? Nope. There's no double adjective, so no hyphen should be used: here, "low" is an adjective; "pressure" is a noun.
Coloured balls
There were two problems:
- Hyphen, not en dash. An en dash was being used to conjoin two adjectives; this job is reserved for hyphens.
- Hanging hyphen. Not just "blue", but "red" requires a hyphen to link it to the coupled word "striped"; there are two double adjectives (qualifying "balls"). The hanging hyphen added to "red" is useful for making this double compound expression neater. It's a rare case in which a hyphen is followed by a space. See MoS.
Wikipedia Prize
- Five classes–comprising more than 100 students–will compete against each other to win a prize for the best Wikipedia article on a suburb of Seattle.
- These en dashes are "interrupters", like very strong commas; they usually occur in pairs to mark off explanatory text.
The en dashes are required, but their formatting is incorrect; as interruptors, they must be spaced. The alternative is unspaced em dashes, like this:
Five classes—comprising more than 100 students—will compete against each other to win a prize for the best Wikipedia article on a suburb of Seattle.Distance
The example is incorrect: there should be no hyphen where a unit abbreviation is used.
The 16-kilometre (10 mi) distance between the centres has been a major impediment to economic development.Seats at the game
Please memorise: "No hyphen after "-ly".
Why? you might ask. Because an "-ly" word, as an adverb, always qualifies a verb (an action), so your readers will already be expecting it to be joined grammatically to the next word. It's not rocket science. This is one of the most common hyphen glitches on Wikipedia.Killing fields
- Word particle. A hyphen should be used in favour of an en dash between two items if one item (or both) is just a word particle; "Franco-" is such a particle – a mere prefix – whereas "French" would be the full-word equivalent ("the French–Prussian War", with an en dash; but by convention this is not the expression). Same for "Sino-Russian War", as opposed to "Chinese–Russian trade agreement". An acronym or abbreviation in this context would count as a full word ("the recent UK–Iceland spat over financial matters").
- Range. The em dash in the date was wrong: ranges require an en dash, and if either item has an internal space, as in both dates here, the en dash must also be spaced, on both sides. Many editors use a non-breaking space on the left side of the en dash when it's spaced ("...
July 1870 – 10 May...").
Hot town
- Minus sign. First, you may think this is an en dash, but it's a minus sign, which mathematicians are fussy about. Until early 2008, MOS used to allow en dashes for negative signs (−3.5) and subtraction operators (4 − 1 = 3); not any more. A minus sign is very subtly different from an en dash—something to do with lying higher on the line. Squint and ... you won't see it. Here they are: hyphen, minus sign, the en dash, and the em dash: - − – — . As a superior race, these mathematicians have the run of the place. Hmmmph.
- Value–unit space. Second, MOS insists on a space between all values (−25) and units (°C), with two minor exceptions (angular degrees and geographical coordinates); so it's −25 °C, not −25°C. There's no space between the minus sign and the value (never − 25)
- Keying it in. Take a look at how you should key it in: "At −25 °C, it was unseasonably warm in Yellowknife."