It allows, in a manner similar to parentheses, an additional thought to be added within a sentence by sort of breaking away from that sentence-as I’ve done here. Now, that is a rather fussy use of the en dash that many people ignore, preferring the hyphen. In that example, “pre” is connected to the open compound “World War II” and therefore has to do a little extra work (to bridge the space between the two words it modifies-space that cannot be besmirched by hyphens because “World War II” is a proper noun). En dashes are also used to connect a prefix to a proper open compound: for example, pre–World War II. And in fact en dashes specify any kind of range, which is why they properly appear in indexes when a range of pages is cited (e.g., 147–48). The en dash connects things that are related to each other by distance, as in the May–September issue of a magazine it’s not a May-September issue, because June, July, and August are also ostensibly included in this range. The hyphen connects two things that are intimately related, usually words that function together as a single concept or work together as a joint modifier (e.g., tie-in, toll-free call, two-thirds). I frame it this way because the work they do is roughly related to their length (though I don’t think CMOS puts it this way outright). First of all, there are three lengths of what are all more or less dashes: hyphen (-), en dash (–), and em dash (-). I will try to condense the various bits of information scattered throughout CMOS. ![]() What is the difference in usage between an em dash and an en dash?Ī. For example:Ī dash (always an "em dash") can be used to credit a quotation.Q. (6) A Dash in a Compound Adjective with Equal PartsĪ dash (generally, an "en dash") can replace a hyphen in a compound adjective with two equal elements. When using a dash to separate times and dates, omit words like "from.to." and "between.and." (5) A Dash to Replace "From.To." or "Between.And."Ī dash (generally, an "en dash") can be used between times and dates. She is only interested in one thing - money.She is only interested in one thing: money.He cannot afford it - the flight alone is too much.Ī dash (generally, an "em dash") can be used to replace a colon to introduce an appositive.He cannot afford it the flight alone is too much.For example:Ī dash (generally, an "em dash") can replace a semicolon used to merge two independent clauses. On Saturday, I took the club secretary - Pat Derbyshire - to Skegness.Ī dash (generally, an "em dash") can replace three dots when used as a pause for effect.On Saturday, I took the club secretary (Pat Derbyshire) to Skegness.Here are the seven ways that dashes are used:ĭashes (generally, "em dashes") can be used as parentheses. What Are Dashes Used For?ĭashes do not have a unique use (i.e., they are used in places where other punctuation marks could be used). Read more on our main page about using dashes. (As most keyboards do not have a dash readily at hand, some writers use two hyphens (-) to represent a dash, but most just use a hyphen.) A dash should not be confused with a hyphen (-), which is used as a joiner in compound adjectives (e.g., "first-class restaurant") and compound nouns (e.g., "water-bottle").ĭashes are slightly longer than hyphens when handwritten. A dash (-) is a punctuation mark with several uses.
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