One punctuation mistake I see often is confusing a dash with a hyphen. A dash is longer than a hyphen and serves an entirely different purpose in most cases. I blame the mass of poorly edited internet resources and the fact that dashes are not found on computer or mobile phone keyboards. However, the lack of a thorough grammar education is also a close contender.
For many of us, we were simply not taught how to use these punctuation marks in our writing. As long as we have periods and commas, we don’t really need to know about those other punctuation marks, right? Well, it’s certainly good to know the basics, but for those of us who write for college or university, work, and especially with the hope of being published, it’s essential to be constantly improving our writing skills—which includes knowing how to recognize and use all kinds of punctuation marks. After all, the comma is one of the basics, but many writers of all skill levels find its rules to be elusive without proper study and regular practice.
So what’s the difference between these oft-confused punctuation marks? The hyphen primarily connects two words to indicate that they have a combined meaning; this is often called a compound word. The dash, however, primarily connects two numbers (the en dash) or two clauses (the em dash). Although the difference between hyphens and dashes is very simple, using hyphens is an entirely different story: the rules for compound words (i.e., whether to spell them as two words, hyphenate them, or write them together as one word) are notoriously nuanced and would take too long to explain in this short post. Here are some guiding principles for using hyphens:
When a compound word involves an adverb ending in -ly, it is typically not hyphenated.
“a strongly worded email” not “a strongly-worded email.”
A compound word that functions as an adjective is typically hyphenated when it appears before the noun it modifies but not after it
“a middle-class neighbourhood” not “a middle class neighbourhood.”
“the neighbourhood is middle class” not “the neighbourhood is middle-class.”
A hyphen is also used as a separator in multiple contexts, such as
phone numbers: 1-800-894-0780
spelling out words (typically in dialogue or in reference to sign language): “My name is Sierra: s-i-e-r-r-a.”
dates: 2018-07-22
Now on to dashes. There are two types: the en dash (–) is about the length of an ‘n,’ and the em dash (—) is about the length of an ‘m.’ In terms of punctuating a sentence, British English prefers the en dash (with a space on either side); however, American English (and the Canadian Government) prefers the em dash (with no space on either side, unless you follow the Canadian Press Stylebook). As always, Canadian English is a bit of a hodgepodge when it comes to this distinction, so it’s best to follow a style guide when applicable.
The en dash has some overlap with the hyphen, but most writers won’t encounter it. Here are some guiding principles:
Do use the en dash
as a substitute for the preposition “to” in number ranges and, occasionally, between words.
“1901–1905” and “Mark 10:46–52” and “The Chiefs defeated the Eagles, 38–35”
“the London–Paris train”
when a compound adjective consists of more than two words. This usage strays into the realm of hyphens, so it should be infrequent and can often be reworded to avoid using the en dash.
“The Byrds–style musicianship” or “their musicianship is reminiscent of The Byrds”
“the post–Great Depression years” or “the years following the Great Depression”
Don’t use the en dash
when “from” precedes the first element. Use “to,” “through,” or “until”
“Sandy went to university from 2011 to 2017.” not “Sandy went to university from 2011–2017.”
when “between” precedes the first element. Use “and.”
“Derek is usually in karate class between 8 and 9 p.m.” not “Derek is usually in karate class between 8–9 p.m.”
The em dash, on the other hand, is highly versatile. It can replace multiple punctuation marks, acting in essentially the same way but providing emphasis or indicating a sudden turn in thought. However, since emphasis signifies something of special importance, an em dash should be used sparingly. Here’s some examples of how em dashes can replace the following punctuation marks:
Commas: “Because Ernie hadn’t washed the dishes—let alone soaked them to loosen the crusty, baked-on pieces—we had to tackle that before we could eat.”
Semicolons and Colons: “I’ve never seen the ocean—that is, I’ve never seen it in person.”
Parentheses: “He could stare at Rembrandt’s exquisite paintings—especially The Storm on the Sea—for hours.”
For fiction writers, the em dash is a particularly great tool for a sudden break in dialogue. For example,
“Well now, that’s not fair,” she insisted with stony eyes and a furrowed brow. “I don’t
hold your sins against—”
“Ha!” he laughed bitterly. “You’ve been holding mine against me these past
five years.”
Lastly, it would be remiss of me not to end this post with a note on how to insert an en or em dash on your mobile phone or computer. There are many different routes to take, so it’s best to find the shortcuts that work for you and your device. On most smartphones, holding down the hyphen button will give you the option to insert an en or em dash. For computers, I use keyboard shortcuts: for an en dash, hold “alt” while typing “0150”; for an em dash, hold “alt” while typing “0151”. I like this one because it works for all computers, in all word processors. You can also insert them manually in Microsoft Word or Google Docs by inserting a “symbol” or “special character” (respectively), but these options take a little longer. Once you have one dash in your document, however, it’s easy enough to copy and paste it throughout. I hope this helps you in your journey toward using the hyphen and the dash with precision and confidence!
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