Compound words can be used as nouns, verbs, adjectives, or adverbs and may be difficult to spell. They can be spelled as one word, two words, or hyphenated, depending on how the word functions and where the word appears in relationship to the word it modifies or its placement in the sentence.
When you aren’t sure how to spell a compound word, consult a dictionary. If you can’t find the word you’re looking for, you can try applying some general principles—explained in the following paragraphs—about compound modifiers.
Compound adjectives
A compound adjective usually consists of two or more words that express a single idea and function as a unit by modifying a noun. Many, but not all, compound adjectives are hyphenated when they appear before nouns: common‐sense answer, cross‐country trip, full‐length mirror, half‐baked scheme, eighth‐grade students, all‐day workshop, self‐conscious behavior; but midweek meeting, secondhand truck, midcareer change, extramural event, nonviolent protest, worldwide circulation, halfhearted support.
When a compound adjective follows a noun, the hyphen is usually omitted: The athlete was top ranked. The driveway was horseshoe shaped. The coat was velvet trimmed.
Using a hyphen is especially important if the compound adjective could be misunderstood by the reader. For example, a fast‐moving van could mean a van that is moving fast or a moving van that is going fast. Your intended meaning must be clear to the reader.
Compound adverbs
Most compound adverbs are written as two words ( distributed all over, going full speed). Those adverbial compounds beginning with over or under are spelled as one word ( overeagerly, underhandedly). Adverbial compounds consisting of spelled‐out fractions are hyphenated ( two‐thirds completed).
Правила правописания сложных существительных / Rules for compound words
Включение звука : кликнуть на «треугольник»
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A question from Charles Otoghile:
What rules do I need to help me combine words — usually putting two words together to form one word, such as classroom, blackboard etc.
Вопрос от Чарльза Отогайла : по каким правилам образуются сложные слова, когда новое слово составляется из двух слов, например : classroom, blackboard и т.д. ?
Amos Paran answers: Отвечает Амос Пэрэн:
Your question, Charles, touches on an important process in forming words in English, a process that we call compounding. What happens is that two independent words combine and make one compound word.
Чарльз, вы задаёте важный вопрос : как образуются в английском языке сложные существительные (слова), когда два отдельных слова соединяются в одно сложное
Many compounds are spelled as one word — as in the two words that you mentioned: classroom and blackboard. But there are many compound words that are not spelled as one word, but that are spelled with a hyphen.
Многие сложные слова пишутся слитно , как в ваших примерах : classroom и blackboard.. Но многие сложые слова пишутся не слитно, а через чёрточку
And in many cases some people will spell them one way, and others will spell them another way — so eye-witness with a hyphen can be spelled eyewitness without a hyphen; the same is true of drop-out.
А во многих случаях бывает двойное написание : кто-то пишет их слитно, а кто-то с чёрточкой . Например, eye-witness (= очевидец) можно писать и слитно eyewitness, то же относится и к drop-out (= исключённый из колледжа)
You can see it written in both ways (drop-out or dropout). Other compounds are always written as two different words — like petrol station or heart attack.
Это слово можно увидеть написанным в двух вариантах (drop-out или dropout). А есть сложные слова, которые всегда пишутся как два отдельных слова, например petrol station (=бензозаправочная станция) или heart attack (=сердечный приступ, инфаркт).
There are two rules that can help — or maybe I should call these generalisations rather than rules.
Могут помочь два правила — или скорее некие обобщения, чем правила
Let’s look at some words that are compounded and written as one word: blackbird; whiteboard; bathroom; skateboard; greenhouse.
Давайте посмотрим на некоторое сложные слова, которые пишутся слитно : blackbird; whiteboard; bathroom; skateboard; greenhouse.
Observe how many syllables they have — they have two syllables, and each of the independent words that make them up is one syllable.
Заметьте, сколько в них гласных звуков : в них два гласных звука, по одному в каждом из составляющих их слов
On the other hand, compounds where one of the words has more than one syllable are normally written with a hyphen or as two separate words. So bathroom is one word; but living room is written as two words. Blackboard is one word, but drawing board is written as two words.
А вот сложные слова, в которых одно из слов имеет более одного гласного звукка, обычно пишутся через чёрточку или как два отдельных слова. Поэтому bathroom (=ванная комната) пишется слитно, а living room (=гостиная) в два слова. Blackboard (=классная доска) пишется слитно, а drawing board (=чертёжная доска) — в два слова
The second important rule concerns the stress. Teachers always like to talk about the difference between a blackbird, which is a compound that refers to a specific kind of bird, and a black bird, which is any bird that is black, and is not a compound.
Второе важное правило касается ударения. Преподаватели любят приводить пример, что есть разница между сложным словом blackbird (=чёрный дрозд), которое обозначает конкретную вид/породу птиц, и black bird, которое означает просто «птица чёрного цвета» и не является сложным существительным
Or about a greenhouse — a glass building where you grow plants, which is a compound — and a green house, which is a house that is green — and is not a compound.
То же насчёт greenhouse (=теплица) — это сложное слово означает «прозрачное/стеклянное строение для выращивания растений», а green house означает просто «дом зелёного цвета» и не является сложным существительным
You will notice that in these short compounds, made of two words of one syllable, the first syllable is stressed, and this is always true.
В таких сложных существительных, состоящих из двух слов с одной гласной в каждом, ударение всегда падает на первый слог
This is also true for most longer compounds — not all, but most of them — so, for example, we talk about a petrol station, not a petrol station; or a heart attack, not a heart attack.
Это же верно и для большинства более длинных сложных слов (хотя не для всех) — так что, например, говорят с ударением на первый слог a petrol station, a heart attack
So, to sum up, I have made two generalisations about compounds, and this may help you. But there is really no substitute for a good dictionary in this case, because these rules are not fixed!
Подведу итоги : я предложил два обобщения насчёт сложных слов, которые могут быть вам полезны. Но всё же в данном вопросе ничто не может заменить хорошего словаря, потому что приведённые мной правила нигде не зафиксированы (это просто мои практические советы).
Both your examples that do not have hyphens are words with negative prefixes.
Words that include a negative (or positive) prefix will usually be written without a hyphen.
Examples: antimatter, indecisive, unwilling, probiotic, and nonaggression.
If the word includes an adjective that is neither directly negative or positive but is instead otherwise descriptive, then you should include a hyphen.
Examples: strong-armed, evil-minded, ill-adviced, and well-intended.
«well» is a borderline case, but it is not 100% positive. It’s between neutral and positive, not one of those words you would use as a prefix in the same sense that you use pro, un, in or anti.
I hope this makes sense.
There are further prefixes that are neither positive or negative but still should not include a hyphen. I don’t think it would be productive for me to quote the full list but words like extraordinary, infrastructure and transatlantic certainly seem to prove my theory a bit flawed. The point remains, however, that there are certain prefixes that are usually used without hyphen.
Compound words can be used as nouns, verbs, adjectives, or adverbs and may be difficult to spell.
They can be spelled as one word, two words, or hyphenated, depending on how the word functions and where the word appears in relationship to the word it modifies or its placement in the sentence.
When you aren’t sure how to spell a compound word, consult a dictionary.
If you can’t find the word you’re looking for, you can try applying some general principles—explained in the following paragraphs—about compound modifiers.
Compound adjectives
A compound adjective usually consists of two or more words that express a single idea and function as a unit by modifying a noun.
Many, but not all, compound adjectives are hyphenated when they appear before nouns: common‐sense answer, cross‐country trip, full‐length mirror, half‐baked scheme, eighth‐grade students, all‐day workshop, self‐conscious behavior; but midweek meeting, secondhand truck, midcareer change, extramural event, nonviolent protest, worldwide circulation, halfhearted support.
When a compound adjective follows a noun, the hyphen is usually omitted: The athlete was top ranked.
The driveway was horseshoe shaped. The coat was velvet trimmed.
Using a hyphen is especially important if the compound adjective could be misunderstood by the reader.
For example, a fast‐moving van could mean a van that is moving fast or a moving van that is going fast.
Your intended meaning must be clear to the reader.
Compound adverbs
Most compound adverbs are written as two words ( distributed all over, going full speed).
Those adverbial compounds beginning with over or under are spelled as one word ( overeagerly, underhandedly).
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How do you decide whether a compound should be written as one word, separate words, or hyphenated words?
Compounds
A compound is a word or word group that consists of two or more parts that work together as a unit to express a
specific concept. Compounds can be formed by combining two or more words (as in double–check,
cost–effective, farmhouse, graphic equalizers, park bench, around–the–clock, or son of a gun), by combining prefixes or suffixes with words (as in ex–president, shoeless, presorted, or uninterruptedly), or by combining two or more word elements (as in macrophage or photochromism). Compounds are written in one of three ways: solid (as in cottonmouth), hyphenated (screenwriter–director), or open (health care). Because of the variety of standard practice, the choice among the styles for a given compound represents one of the most common and vexing of all style issues writers encounter.
Compounds in the Dictionary
A good dictionary will list many permanent compounds, compounds so commonly used that they have become
permanent parts of the language. However, a dictionary generally will not list temporary compounds, those
created to meet a writer’s need at a particular moment. Most compounds whose meanings are self–evident from the
meanings of their component words also will not be listed in the dictionary, even if they are permanent and
widely used.
The Compound–styling Conundrum
When compounds begin to be used widely, there may be significant variation in how writers style them, and it can
take years to achieve a high degree of consistency in their format. For many terms, it is often completely acceptable
to choose freely among open, hyphenated, and closed alternatives, even though the term has been used in English for
an extended period (for instance, lifestyle, life–style, or life style). Although the
styling that ultimately takes hold for a compound may be determined by nothing more than editorial preference, there
is one pattern that often holds true as new compounds become entrenched in English. Compound nouns are usually written
as one word, compound verbs are generally written as two, and compound adjectives are very often written with a
hyphen.
Styling Internet– and Computer–Related Terms (e.g., on–line, website, e–mail)
Internet–related compounds are still so new that their preferred styling remains in flux, with the same compound
styled different ways in different publications. Over time, they will likely become more consistent, but what should
writers do now? The following list provides the Internet–term stylings that are currently most widely used in
professionally edited, published writing.
- E–mail (with a capital E when used as a noun)
- e–mail (with a lowercase e when used as a verb)
- online
- Web site
- Web page
- e–book
- e–tail
- webcam
- webcast/webcaster
- webmaster (often cap)
- dot–com
Text for this article was adapted from Merriam-Webster’s Manual for Writers and Editors.