The hyphen seems like a simplistic form of punctuation to the average reader. In truth, the words hyphen and dash are often incorrectly used and interchanged. Hyphens and dashes are quite involved little fellows, and it can be confusing to understand which form to use in writing. If you are a writer, these tips will help you to not only distinguish between a hyphen and a dash but to also use them properly.
More Than Just the Button Beside the Zero
No doubt, when you learned to type, you learned where the hyphen (or minus key, depending on what you call it) button was. The hyphen, located beside the zero on my computer keyboard, is frequently used. If you do enough typing, I’m sure you use it often, too.
The buck doesn’t stop with the hyphen, though. There are dashes involved! Let’s explore the proper usage of a few of the most common hyphen and dash functions for writers.
The Hyphen
Most lines seen in text are called hyphens by the average reader. However, a hyphen is only used to separate words or numbers.
The recipe calls for three-fourths cup of flour.
In the above example, the phrasal adjective (three-fourths) is hyphenated. If you are using fractions in your work and are unsure if the hyphen is correct, a recast of your sentence may work as well. “The recipe calls for three fourths of a cup of flour” is a good example of a recast.
My name is Jami. It is spelled J-A-M-I.
When spelling out a word letter by letter, the hyphen is used to separate letters.
My phone number is not 867-5309.
Nodding to the song “867-5309” by Tommy Tutone, phone number separation is achieved with a hyphen.
En Dash
Let’s dive into a deeper level. The en dash functions similarly to a hyphen, but if you look closely, it is bigger in size. It is roughly the size of a capital N—hence the name en dash. Let’s discuss what the en dash does.
“To” or “through”
Essentially, the en dash is often used to replace the words “to” or “through” in a sentence. As you read the examples below, replace the en dash in your reading with the words “to” or “through” to understand.
The class was assigned to read pages 100–120.
Ohio State beat Michigan 56–27.
In the above examples, the en dash is used to connect continuing numbers. In this example, you also see that the en dash is larger in size than the hyphen.
NOTE: An exception to the rule above is when the words “from” or “before” precede the numbers in sequence. The example below shows incorrect and correct sentences.
X Mrs. Rodriguez’s appointment was from 1:30 p.m.–2:30 p.m.
✔ Mrs. Rodriguez’s appointment was from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Compound Adjectives
The example below illustrates the correct use of the en dash with the compound adjective.
post–Civil War fiction
Making the en dash
How do you make an en dash? If you are a Mac user, hold Alt and the Hyphen (Minus) key at the same time. If you’re a Windows user, hold down the Alt key and type 0150. In Microsoft Word, you can also use Alt–hyphen (minus).
Em Dash
The em dash, larger than the hyphen and the en dash, is roughly the size of a capital M—hence the name em dash. The em dash covers a lot of ground in writing. Here are only a few of the most common examples of the use of an em dash in fiction writing.
Replaces commas, colons, or parentheses
Many fiction writers are very familiar with the em dash because it can be used in place of commas, colons, or parentheses. It can provide emphasis to a thought; but to avoid confusion, care needs to be taken that the em dash isn’t overused.
X Tyra—or Mrs. Smith as she is known in class—turned from the whiteboard—rather abruptly—and loudly cleared her throat when the class became disruptive.
✔ When the class became disruptive, Tyra—or Mrs. Smith as she is known in class—turned rather abruptly from the whiteboard and loudly cleared her throat.
Notice the multiple uses of the em dash in the first example above. Read it aloud and notice the interruption. Sounds disjointed, doesn’t it? The overuse causes a chaotic break in continuity and would likely annoy—if not confuse—the reader.
Here is an example of an appropriate use of the em dash replacing a semicolon.
Finishing her lesson plans had become difficult—the sound of the buffer being used on the tile drowned out Tyra’s thoughts.
Breaks in thought
In writing dialogue, you may have a character who is interrupted during speech. In such a case, the use of an em dash, not a hyphen, is used.
X “You know, there was this one time that I-” Tyra began.
“Oh, no. Here we go again,” Ivan moaned.✔ “You know, there was this one time that I—” Tyra began.
“Oh, no. Here we go again,” Ivan moaned.
In the above example, the first sentence incorrectly uses a hyphen. Notice the second sentence has the em dash correctly utilized.
Used with other punctuation
You may feel a little hesitant to use an em dash in conjunction with other punctuation. The following examples are correct uses of the em dash and punctuation.
✔ Tyra looked up at the clock—was it five o’clock already?—and decided to take the rest of the work home with her.
✔ “Your assignment is due tomorrow—not next week!—so please make sure you finish any remaining work tonight.”
2-em and 3-em dashes
There are cases where two or three em dashes are utilized. A 2-em dash is used to represent a missing word or part of a word. Legal documents often use the 2-em dash to protect identities. Look at the following example:
Theodore R—— reported suspicious activity at the corner of Elm and Fifth.
The 3-em dash is used in bibliographies to avoid having to retype the author’s name when the same author was named in a previous entry. Here’s an example:
Post, Carol J. Trust My Heart. Grand Haven, Michigan: Waterfall Press, 2016.
———. Shattered Haven. New York: Love Inspired Books, 2015.
As you can see in the above bibliography excerpt, Carol J. Post is the author of the two books listed. I don’t need to type her name a second time when adding the second entry; instead, I simply enter 3-em dashes and a period in place of her name, then space and add the book title and the rest of the publication information.
Making the em dash
How do you make an em dash? If you are a Mac user, hold Shift–Alt–hyphen (minus) keys at the same time. If you’re a Windows user, hold down the Alt key and type 0151. In Microsoft Word, you can type two hyphens (no spaces), and the program will automatically convert those two hyphens to an em dash. If that fails, you can also use Alt–Ctrl–hyphen (minus).
All Together Now!
I hope this short tutorial has helped you learn the basics of hyphens and dashes. If you want to know more about them (this article didn’t explore all of their uses!), check out the resources below. Now, I’ll leave you with an illustration showing the difference in size between all three discussed today.
Hyphen (-)
En dash (–)
Em dash (—)
Resources
- Chicago Manual of Style, 17th Edition—5.92, 6.75–6.94
- http://www.writingenglish.com/hyphen.htm
- http://www.writingenglish.com/dash.htm
More writing help will be coming soon!
