The hyphen (-) , the shortest of the three marks, is familiar (sometimes wretchedly so) to most writers. So is the em dash (—), more often called the long dash, or sometimes just the dash.
Is a hyphen a dash?
The dash is often used after an independent clause . The hyphen, on the other hand, is used to join two words together like yellow-green. It usually does not have a space between the words. Also, the dash tends to be slightly longer than the hyphen, and usually would have spaces before and after the symbol.
What is this dash called?
The dash (—), also called the em dash , is the long horizontal bar, much longer than a hyphen. Few keyboards have a dash, but a word processor can usually produce one in one way or another. If your keyboard can't produce a dash, you will have to resort to a hyphen as a stand-in.
What is the double hyphen called?
Em dash . Em dashes — so called because they are (at least historically) the width of the character m — are used for emphasis or interruption. They can be used on their own or in pairs to offset a word or phrase: ... The double hyphen (–) is sometimes used in place of the em dash.
Is a dash a punctuation mark?
The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line . It is similar in appearance to the hyphen and minus sign but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline.
What is long dash called?
The dash (—), also called the em dash , is the long horizontal bar, much longer than a hyphen. Few keyboards have a dash, but a word processor can usually produce one in one way or another.
Where is dash used?
A dash is a little horizontal line that floats in the middle of a line of text (not at the bottom: that's an underscore). It's longer than a hyphen and is commonly used to indicate a range or a pause. Dashes are used to separate groups of words , not to separate parts of words like a hyphen does.
Is a dash longer than a hyphen?
A hyphen (-) is a punctuation mark that's used to join words or parts of words. ... A dash is longer than a hyphen and is commonly used to indicate a range or a pause. The most common types of dashes are the en dash (–) and the em dash (—).
How do you use two hyphens in a sentence?
Two dashes can emphasize a modifier . Words or phrases that describe a noun can be set off with dashes if you wish to emphasize them. Example: The fairgrounds—cold and wet in the October rain—were deserted. Example: Nettie—her chin held high—walked out into the storm.
When should a hyphen be used?
Generally, you need the hyphen only if the two words are functioning together as an adjective before the noun they're describing . If the noun comes first, leave the hyphen out. This wall is load bearing.
Why is it called an em dash?
Why is it called em dash? The name comes from typography —the work of setting, arranging, and printing types. An em dash is a dash that is the width of an M.
What does double hyphen mean in writing?
: a punctuation mark ⸗ used in place of a hyphen at the end of a line to indicate that the word so divided is normally hyphenated .
What does 2 hyphens mean?
It is used as a distinct punctuation mark in Ojibwe language publications in the Fiero Roman orthography, as a hyphen is used to separate compound preverb units regardless of their line position, while a double hyphen is used to divide a word at the end of a line and can be treated as a soft hyphen.
Is dash a special character?
3 Answers. The hyphen is mostly a normal character in regular expressions. You do not need to escape the hyphen outside of a character class; it has no special meaning .
What is an example of a dash?
A dash can be used to replace a colon that offers more information about something previously mentioned in the sentence. For example: She demanded just one thing from her students: effort . She demanded just one thing from her students — effort.
