Is a word with a hyphen one word


Asked by: Jada Schinner

Score: 4.7/5
(75 votes)

The reason is quite simple—the generally accepted rule is that a compound word is always treated as a single word. For instance, the compound adjective «real-time» is a different word than «real time.» … So, once compound words are closed or hyphenated, they are counted as one word.

What is the rule on hyphenated words?

When you connect words with the hyphen, you make it clear to readers that the words work together as a unit of meaning. … 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.

Does it count as one word or two?

The word, «it’s» is one word, but would be counted as two words because if not contracted, you would have two separate words. To circle the words, however, «it’s» would be one word and would be circled.

Is Wordcount one word?

The word count is the number of words in a document or passage of text. Word counting may be needed when a text is required to stay within certain numbers of words. … When converting character counts to words, a measure of 5 or 6 characters to a word is generally used for English.

What words are not counted in word count?

Word count includes everything in the main body of the text (including headings, tables, citations, quotes, lists, etc). The list of references, appendices and footnotes2 are NOT included in the word count unless it is clearly stated in the coursework instructions that the module is an exception to this rule.

36 related questions found

How many pages is 2000 words?

Answer: 2,000 words is 4 pages single-spaced or 8 pages double-spaced. Documents that typically contain 2,000 words include college essays, operating manuals, and longer form blog posts. It will take approximately 7 minutes to read 2,000 words.

Is contractions 1 or 2 words?

Contracted words count as the number of words they would be if they were not contracted. For example, isn’t, didn’t, I’m, I’ll are counted as two words (replacing is not, did not, I am, I will). Where the contraction replaces one word (e.g. can’t for cannot), it is counted as one word.

Is should’ve one word?

Writing could’ve and should’ve is standard, even if the spellcheckers say differently. The contractions just emphasize the pronunciation of the words.

Is Semantic a real word?

Semantics (from Ancient Greek: σημαντικός sēmantikós, «significant») is the study of meaning, reference, or truth. The term can be used to refer to subfields of several distinct disciplines, including philosophy, linguistics and computer science.

What happens if you say hyphen 5 times?

It looks like saying “Hyphen” five times crashes the iOS launcher, bringing you to the home screen. … 1 — perhaps the bug was introduced in a recent version of iOS. Verdict: Fact. Saying “hyphen” five times using voice input crashes your iPhone, but there’s no need to worry; nothing else happens in the process.

What is a hyphenated word?

The hyphen ‐ is a punctuation mark used to join words and to separate syllables of a single word. The use of hyphens is called hyphenation. Son-in-law is an example of a hyphenated word.

What are some examples of hyphenated words?

Examples of hyphenated compound words include:

  • two-fold.
  • check-in.
  • merry-go-round.
  • father-in-law.
  • seventy-two.
  • long-term.
  • up-to-date.
  • mother-in-law.

What are semantic words?

Semantics is a branch of linguistics that looks at the meanings of words and language, including the symbolic use of language. It also refers to the multiple meanings of words as well. Two terms that are related to semantics are connotation and denotation. … Denotation includes the literal definition of the word.

What are the two types of semantics?

Semantics is the study of meaning. There are two types of meaning: conceptual meaning and associative meaning. The conceptual meaning of the word sea is something that is large, filled with saltwater, and so on.

What is should’ve short for?

short form of should have: You should’ve come to the party last night, Manya. More examples. You should’ve seen Charlie dancing! I should’ve got there earlier.

Is Couldve a word?

Could of is a common misspelling of the verb phrase could have. Most native English speakers use the contraction could’ve in everyday speech. This pronunciation omits the stressed H sound that differentiates have from of in the slurred familiarity of spoken English.

Is should’ve proper English?

Should’ve is the usual spoken form of ‘should have‘, especially when ‘have’ is an auxiliary verb.

Is Don’t considered one word?

A contraction is a word made by shortening and combining two words. Words like can’t (can + not), don’t (do + not), and I’ve (I + have) are all contractions. People use contractions in both speaking and writing.

Is syntactically a correct word?

According to the rules of syntax. The sentence was syntactically correct, but made no sense.

Are contractions a word?

A contraction is a shortened form of a word (or group of words) that omits certain letters or sounds. … The most common contractions are made up of verbs, auxiliaries, or modals attached to other words: He would=He’d. I have=I’ve. They are=They’re.

Can you write a 10 page paper in one night?

Writing a 10- or 20-page research paper in one night is not easy, so there are bound to be mistakes and typos. The best way to catch these mistakes is to follow these tips: Take a break before you edit so you can come back to the page with somewhat fresh eyes and a clearer head.

What is 1500 words in pages?

Answer: 1,500 words is 3 pages single-spaced or 6 pages double-spaced. Documents that typically contain 1,500 words are short-form news articles, medium length blog posts, and short pieces of journalism. It will take approximately 5 minutes to read 1,500 words.

How many pages is 50000 words?

A standard typed manuscript page (i.e. what you type, before it’s a book page), with 12pt font and one inch margins is about 300 words. A 50,000 word manuscript is about 165 pages.

What is pragmatics example?

Pragmatics is the study of how words are used, or the study of signs and symbols. An example of pragmatics is how the same word can have different meanings in different settings. An example of pragmatics is the study of how people react to different symbols.

Do hyphenated words count as one single word or a phrase?

For example, is “non-hyphenated” a phrase or a single word?

Hyphenated words title image

Hyphenated words can be confusing for writers! There are many rules and guidelines on when to use hyphens. In today’s article, we’ll take a look at exactly what hyphenated words are and when to use them. We’ll go through plenty of examples so that you can use hyphenated words with confidence in your writing.

What Are Hyphenated Words?

A hyphenated word is a word that contains at least one hyphen. Typically, hyphenated words are compound words, which means the hyphen connects two or more words.

There are other uses of hyphens that we use in writing that aren’t compound words. We’ll cover these examples later in this article.

When you can use hyphens

When to Use Hyphenated Words

We use hyphens to combine certain types of words. These include compound modifiers, such as adjectives and participles. We hyphenate many numbers when they are spelled out in word form, like twenty-one.

Sometimes, we hyphenate words after prefixes, but not every prefix requires a hyphen. How do you know which ones to use? We’ll cover these in more detail in a later section.

Hyphens can also help our writing become clearer. This means that occasionally, we can add hyphens where they aren’t required grammatically. Sometimes, that little punctuation mark can make a huge difference in improving clarity and readability.

When you can use hyphens continued

Keep reading for detailed explanations of how and when to use hyphens in your writing.

Hyphens vs. Dashes

Many people confuse hyphens and dashes. We even say dashes when we’re using hyphens in web addresses, which makes things even more confusing.

But in English grammar, hyphens and dashes are very different. A hyphen is one short, horizontal line. You can find it next to the 0 on a QWERTY keyboard.

English also has two types of dashes, the en dash and em dash. The em dash (—) is a punctuation mark used between words to break apart thoughts or ideas within a sentence. It’s the length of two dashes.

The en dash (–) shows ranges between numbers, dates, etc. It’s wider than a hyphen and narrower than an em dash.

Many people use hyphens when they should use en dashes, or they’ll use two hyphens in place of an em dash. But these are three distinct punctuation marks and are not interchangeable.

The difference between hyphens, en dashes, and em dashes

Rules to Follow: What Words Should and Shouldn’t Be Hyphenated?

Hyphenation rules are tricky. Some words must be hyphenated, others should never be hyphenated, and still others can be hyphenated but don’t have to be. We’ll cover some of the basic guidelines for hyphenated words below.

Compound Modifiers

Sometimes when we describe a noun, we use two or more words together in place of one adjective. We call these compound modifiers. You might also hear them called compound adjectives.

There are several types of compound modifiers. One type is adjective + noun (or noun + adjective). We usually hyphenate these words. Here are some examples:

  • short-term
  • full-scale
  • blue-collar
  • skin-tight
  • rock-hard
  • world-famous

Another type of compound adjective combines an adjective with a past participle:

  • old-fashioned
  • tight-lipped
  • good-hearted
  • deep-fried
  • absent-minded

Adjectives can also combine with a present participle:

  • good-looking
  • slow-going
  • quick-thinking

Nouns can also combine with past and present participles by using a hyphen to make a compound modifier:

  • record-breaking
  • mind-numbing
  • sun-kissed
  • air-fried

Some hyphenated compound modifiers are two adjectives, like the examples below:

  • fat-free
  • bluish-purple
  • topsy-turvy

There are also hyphenated compound modifiers that include adverbs, but these get tricky. We’ll cover adverbs in a later section.

Numbers 21 through 99

In English, we hyphenate many two-digit numbers in their written form. Any base-ten higher than twenty plus an integer one through nine is hyphenated. What does this mean? Here are some examples:

  • twenty-one
  • thirty-two
  • forty-three
  • fifty-four
  • sixty-five
  • seventy-six
  • eighty-seven
  • ninety-eight

We don’t hyphenate teens (e.g. sixteen, seventeen), nor numbers higher than 99.

Let’s look at an example of a large number, so you can see where the hyphen goes:

  • 273 = two hundred seventy-three

Notice that we do not hyphenate “two hundred.” We also don’t need the word “and” because in mathematics “and” denotes a decimal. Outside of math, we can place the word “and” to mimic how many people speak. It would look like this:

  • two hundred and seventy-three

What about even bigger numbers? Here’s an example:

  • 24,535 = twenty-four thousand five hundred [and] thirty-five.

How to use hyphens with numbers

Once again, the “and” is optional. Our hyphenation rules remain the same no matter how large the number gets.

If it’s read like a base-ten plus a number (e.g. twenty-four), we hyphenate. The words “hundred,” “thousand,” “million,” and so on, do not need hyphens.

Compound Adjectives with Numbers

Some compound modifiers contain numbers. These might be periods of time or ages. We hyphenate any compound adjective that contains a number if it precedes a noun. Here are some examples:

  • two-week vacation
  • three-day weekend
  • five-year-old boy
  • seventy-three-year-old grandma
  • seven-year itch
  • fifteenth-century castle
  • second-place medal
  • third-grade class

ProWritingAid

If there is a number in a compound adjective, it must have a hyphen. However, if it’s not part of a compound adjective that precedes a noun, we do not hyphenate the word:

  • I’m on vacation for two weeks.
  • The boy is five years old.
  • The castle was built in the fifteenth century.
  • She teaches third grade.
  • I came in second place.

Always ask yourself how the phrase is functioning. If it’s a compound adjective that contains a number, use a hyphen!

Certain Prefixes

Prefixes are letters or words that attach to the beginning of a word to make a new word. Usually, we do not need to add hyphens after prefixes. However, some prefixes require a hyphen.

When we use the prefix “ex-” to mean “former,” we use a hyphen. Ex- has several meanings as a prefix, and some do not require a hyphen.

If you aren’t sure, try replacing the prefix with the word “former.” If it still makes sense, add a hyphen. If not, the hyphen is probably unnecessary.

  • ex-husband
  • ex-member
  • ex-coworker

So, you wouldn’t need it for words like “excommunicate.” The meaning of the prefix is different.

If you’re using “self-” as a prefix, always add a hyphen. Don’t confuse this with the root word “self” that stands alone as a noun! Here’s what it looks like as a prefix.

  • self-loathing
  • self-confidence
  • self-imposed

You can think of these as compound modifiers instead of a prefix if it helps you remember to use the hyphen.

Likewise, if you’re using “all-” as a prefix, it functions like a hyphenated compound modifier. Let’s look at some examples:

  • all-encompassing
  • all-powerful
  • all-in

You should also hyphenate words that have prefixes before capitalized words, such as “un-American,” “pro-Palestinian,” or “post-Depression era.”

Some words that contain other prefixes have hyphens, but these will occur on an individual basis rather than as a hard and fast rule.

Hyphenating for Clarity

Just when you think hyphenating words was easy once you learn the rules, you find out that some hyphenation rules are optional!

Every now and then, you might write a word that is difficult to read without a hyphen. This often occurs when a prefix shoves two identical letters together.

In these situations, you can add a hyphen to make your writing easier to read. Words like “pre-eclampsia” or “re-elect” are easier to read with the hyphen, even though it’s not necessary.

Hyphens can also help ensure that readers emphasize a syllable correctly to avoid confusion with another word. “Re-collect” will tell the reader you mean “to collect again” rather than “recollect” or “remember.”

Hyphens and Adverbs

Adverbs often combine with other words to form compound modifiers. Sometimes, we need hyphens. Other times, we don’t. How do you remember when to use a hyphen with an adverb?

If the adverb ends in -ly, do not use a hyphen. Take a look at these examples:

  • beautifully dressed
  • heavily laced
  • happily married
  • horribly disfigured
  • poorly written

But not all adverbs end in -ly. Here are some examples of compound modifiers with adverbs that do need a hyphen:

  • well-informed
  • never-ending
  • far-sighted
  • even-keeled

If you aren’t sure when to use a hyphen with adverbs, ProWritingAid can help. The Grammar Report will point out missing and unnecessary hyphens.

ProWritingAid correcting a hyphenated word

Examples of Hyphenated Compound Words

Compound words are words that are comprised of two or more words, often nouns, to create a new word. There are open compound words, closed compound words, and hyphenated compound words.

Open compound words include words such as coffee table, dining room, high school, ice cream, and peanut butter. There’s a space between these words, but both parts of the word are necessary. Peanut and butter are two different things than peanut butter.

Closed compound words push words together without a space or hyphen. Words such as mailbox, skateboard, sunshine, bookshop, and firefighter are closed compound words.

Some compound words used to be hyphenated but eventually the hyphen went out of fashion.

Hyphenated compound words use a hyphen to connect the words. Here are some examples:

  • six-pack
  • merry-go-round
  • runner-up
  • king-size
  • editor-in-chief

Hyphenated compound words like this differ from compound modifiers because they are nouns that are always hyphenated. They don’t function as adjectives or modifiers.

Other Uses of Hyphens in Writing

Hyphens have other uses in English writing, too. They don’t always form new words or connect parts of speech. Sometimes, they are used for formatting purposes.

When we justify text, or line up both margins, words can get cut off. While you can place a long word on the next line, this can look messy and uneven, particularly in books. Hyphens are used to cut words off between lines.

Hyphens can also denote a stutter or stammer in dialogue, as in this example:

  • “It’s f-f-freezing out here!”

These are formatting rules more than grammar rules, but it’s important to know that we can use hyphens in this way.

Conclusion on Words with Hyphens

Hyphens are a tiny punctuation mark that nonetheless pack a punch. Always ensure you are using a hyphen instead of an en dash or em dash when hyphenating words.

Remember to use hyphens in most compound modifiers, and always run your writing through an editing program like ProWritingAid to catch any hyphen errors.


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Compound words usually consist of two words (two components) that may be written separately, with a hyphen, or as one word. Rules and recommendations for the use of the hyphen with compound words are rather complicated and subject to change, so it is best to consult a good up-to-date dictionary.

Examples of compound words:

toothpaste; flashlight; night club

go out; light-green; twenty-five

Note: Both components (both words) in compound words are stressed. In this material, capital letters show the syllable / word with primary stress. Secondary stress is on the other component of the compound word. Secondary stress is not shown here. (You can listen to compound words in Listening for Stress in Compound Words (AmE) in the section Phonetics.)

Note: English terms

The terms «open compound; closed compound; hyphenated compound» are often used in English linguistic materials.

Compound words written as two separate words are called «open compounds». For example: credit card; high school; light bulb; post office.

Compound words written as one word are called «closed compounds» (or «solid compounds»). For example: airplane, highland, lighthouse, railroad.

Compound words with a hyphen are called «hyphenated compounds». For example: bad-tempered; good-looking; high-minded; light-hearted.

Compound nouns

Compound nouns are very common in English. Many dictionaries give compound nouns as separate entries, but their stress is not always indicated. Use the links to online dictionaries on the page Vocabulary to check the transcription of compound nouns and to listen to their pronunciation.

In compound nouns, both components (both words) are stressed. Primary stress falls on the first component (the first word), even if the two words are written separately. Usually, the second component is a noun. The first component may be a noun, a gerund, an adjective, or a verb.

FOOTball; ARMchair; MAILbox

PHOtograph; TELegram; TELescope

WRITing desk; SWIMming pool

HIGH school; HIGHway; HOT dog

CRYbaby; PUSHcart; BREAKthrough

Primary stress on the first component

Primary stress on the first component reflects the tight connection between the two parts of a compound noun. This stress is the main distinguishing mark between a compound noun (stress on the first component) and a regular / free Attribute + Noun combination in which primary stress is on the second word (on the noun).

Compare these pairs in which the first word combination is a compound noun (tight connection between the two components; primary stress on the first component; secondary stress on the second component), and the second is a free combination of an adjective or participle with a noun (loose connection between the two words; primary stress on the second word; secondary stress on the first word).

GREENhouse – green HOUSE

BLACKboard – black BOARD

DARKroom – dark ROOM

EVEning dress – evening SKY

WALKing stick – walking PEOPLE

READing test – reading BOY

SINGing lesson – singing GIRL

MOBile phone – mobile PERson

STONE Age – stone BUILDing

HOT dog – hot TEA

PAPer knife – paper BAG

ENGlish teacher – English TEACHer

SUMmertime – summer CLOTHES

SUMmer camp – summer SPORTS

NIGHT school, EVEning school – night HOURS, evening HOURS

There are some exceptions from the standard pattern of compound noun stress, for example, manKIND. In some cases, there are two variants of stress in compound nouns, for example, well-BEing; WELL-being.

Note: Most compound nouns are usually written as one word (without a hyphen) or as two separate words. But some compound nouns are hyphenated. For example: cease-fire; court-martial; cross-purposes; father-in-law; mother-in-law; great-grandfather; great-grandson; self-control; self-service; well-wisher.

Compound nouns written as two words

Language learners usually have no problem with stress in compound nouns written as single words (POSTcard; PANcake) but may have difficulty identifying compound nouns written as two separate words (CREDit card; WEDding cake).

Examples of compound nouns that are usually written as two separate words are given below. Primary stress is on the first word; secondary stress is on the second word.

FOOTball player; CAR dealer

FIRE fighter; SMOKE detector

MATH student; GRAMMar book

CONference hall; MEDical school

MINeral water; FRUIT juice

PORK chop; CARVing knife

FRYing pan; dePARTment store

LIVing room; LIGHT bulb

TRAIN station; BUS stop

PARKing lot; DRIVing test

eCONomy class; dePARture time

CREDit card; SAVings account

CELL phone; PHONE call

POST office; TELephone book

BLOOD type; HEALTH check

DRINKing problem; HEART disease

DEATH sentence; LIFE insurance

HORror movie; GHOST story

AIR pressure; WEATHer report

Note: The rules of adding the plural ending s/es and the apostrophe to compound nouns are described in Adding the Ending s/es to Nouns and Verbs and Adding the Apostrophe to Nouns in the section Writing.

Phrasal verbs with postpositions

Phrasal verbs with postpositions (with adverbial particles) are compound verbs in which both components are stressed, usually with stronger stress on the postposition.

‘fall aPART; ‘turn aWAY

‘come BACK; ‘come IN

‘break DOWN; ‘break IN

‘break THROUGH; ‘go ON

‘take OFF; ‘look OUT;

‘move OVer; ‘give UP

‘make UP; ‘bring UP

(See examples with these phrasal verbs in the subsection Phrasal Verbs in the section Idioms.)

If a compound noun is formed from a phrasal verb, primary stress in it falls on the first component, and the noun is usually written as a single word or with a hyphen.

GETaway; COMEback

BREAKdown; BREAKthrough

LOOKout; OUTlook

DOWNfall; UPbringing

MAKE-up; TAKE(-)off

Compound adjectives

Both parts of compound adjectives are stressed. Stronger stress usually falls on the second component of two-word compound adjectives.

dark-GREEN; light-BROWN

grayish-BLUE; bright-RED

red-HOT; white-HOT

absent-MINDed; low-SPIRited

old-FASHioned; cold-BLOODed

well-KNOWN; well-DRESSed

broken-HEARTed; HEARTbroken

easyGOing, easy-GOing

good-LOOKing; longSTANDing

snow-WHITE; sky-BLUE

stone-BLIND; ice-COLD

duty-FREE; skin-DEEP

man-MADE; handMADE

half-DEAD; half-FULL

self-CONscious; self-CONfident

Note: Stress on the noun

If one of the components in a two-word adjective is a noun, stronger stress may fall on the noun, irrespective of whether it is the first or second component.

COLor-blind; WATerproof

high-CLASS; high-SPEED

low-COST; low-KEY

LAW-abiding; EARsplitting

off-COLor

off-BALance

AIRsick; SEAsick

Note: Hyphen with compound adjectives

A compound adjective before the noun that it modifies is written with a hyphen: a dark-blue dress; a reddish-brown rug; a well-known writer; a well-read student.

Many compound adjectives in the position after the linking verb are written as two separate words, without a hyphen. Examples: Her dress is dark blue. The rug is reddish brown. This writer is well known.

Many other compound adjectives keep the hyphen in such cases: He is absent-minded and old-fashioned. She is good-looking and good-natured. She is well-read in English poetry.

Combinations of adverbs ending in «ly» with adjectives or participles are not hyphenated: a widely known fact; entirely white hair; a highly paid lawyer.

If a compound noun written as two separate words is used as an attribute before another noun, such an attribute is usually hyphenated: a high-school teacher; the living-room window; a parking-lot attendant.

Compound numerals

In compound numerals consisting of several words, each component / each word is stressed (except «and»); the last component receives the strongest stress.

Compound numerals from twenty-one to ninety-nine are hyphenated. Fractions in the function of nouns may be with or without a hyphen.

thirTEEN; sevenTEEN

fifTEENTH; eighTEENTH

twenty-THREE; forty-SIX

fifty-SEVen; ninety-EIGHT

sixty-SECond; seventy-FIFTH

five HUNdred and thirty-TWO

three hundred THOUsand

one-HALF, one HALF

two-THIRDS, two THIRDS

one twenty-FIFTH

twenty-three HUNdredths

(Read more about the pronunciation of numbers in Numbers and Numerals in the section Miscellany.)

Ударение в сложных словах

Сложные слова обычно состоят из двух слов (двух компонентов), которые могут быть написаны раздельно (в два слова), с дефисом, или слитно (как одно слово). Правила и рекомендации по употреблению дефиса со сложными словами довольно сложны и подвержены изменению, поэтому лучше всего проверять написание в хорошем современном словаре.

Примеры сложных слов:

зубная паста; фонарик; ночной клуб

выйти; светло-зелёный; двадцать пять

Примечание: Оба компонента (оба слова) в сложных словах ударные. В этом материале, заглавные буквы показывают слог / слово с главным ударением. Второстепенное ударение на другом компоненте сложного слова. Второстепенное ударение не показано здесь. (Вы можете послушать сложные слова в материале Listening for Stress in Compound Words (AmE) в разделе Phonetics.)

Примечание: Английские термины

Термины «open compound; closed compound; hyphenated compound» часто употребляются в английских лингвистических материалах.

Сложные слова, которые пишутся раздельно, в два слова, называются «open compounds». Например: credit card; high school; light bulb; post office.

Сложные слова, которые пишутся слитно, как одно слово, называются «closed compounds» (или «solid compounds»). Например: airplane, highland, lighthouse, railroad.

Сложные слова с дефисом называются «hyphenated compounds». Например: bad-tempered; good-looking; high-minded; light-hearted.

Сложные существительные

Сложные существительные очень употребительны в английском языке. Многие словари дают сложные существительные как отдельные словарные статьи, но их ударение не всегда указано. Используйте ссылки на онлайн-словари на странице Vocabulary, чтобы проверить транскрипцию сложных существительных и послушать их произношение.

В сложных существительных оба компонента (оба слова) ударные. Главное ударение падает на первый компонент (первое слово), даже если эти два слова пишутся раздельно. Обычно, второй компонент – существительное. Первым компонентом может быть существительное, герундий, прилагательное или глагол.

футбол; кресло; почтовый ящик

фотография; телеграмма; телескоп

письменный стол; плавательный бассейн

средняя школа; шоссе; сосиска

плакса; ручная тележка; прорыв

Главное ударение на первом компоненте

Главное ударение на первом компоненте отражает крепкую связь между двумя частями сложного существительного. Это ударение является главным различительным признаком между сложным существительным (ударение на первом компоненте) и обычным / свободным сочетанием Определение + существительное, в котором главное ударение ставится на втором слове (на существительном).

Сравните эти пары, в которых первое словосочетание – сложное существительное (крепкая связь между двумя компонентами; главное ударение на первом компоненте; второстепенное ударение на втором компоненте), а второе – свободное сочетание прилагательного или причастия с существительным (не крепкая связь между двумя словами; главное ударение на втором слове; второстепенное ударение на первом слове).

теплица, парник – зелёный дом (цвет)

школьная доска – чёрная доска (цвет)

комната для проявки фото – тёмная комната

вечернее платье (тип одежды) – вечернее небо

трость для ходьбы – гуляющие люди

тест по чтению – читающий мальчик

урок пения – поющая девочка

мобильный телефон – мобильный человек

Каменный век – каменное здание

сосиска (в булочке) – горячий чай

нож для бумаги – бумажный пакет

учитель английского – учитель-англичанин

лето, летний сезон – летняя одежда

летний лагерь (для детей) – летние виды спорта

вечерняя школа – ночные часы, вечерние часы (период времени)

Есть некоторые исключения из стандартной модели ударения сложных существительных, например, manKIND (человечество). В некоторых случаях есть два варианта ударения в сложных словах, например, well-BEing; WELL-being (благосостояние).

Примечание: Большинство сложных существительных обычно пишутся слитно, как одно слово (без дефиса) или раздельно, как два отдельных слова. Но некоторые сложные существительные пишутся с дефисом. Например: cease-fire; court-martial; cross-purposes; father-in-law; mother-in-law; great-grandfather; great-grandson; self-control; self-service; well-wisher.

Сложные существительные с написанием в два слова

Изучающие язык обычно не имеют проблем с ударением в сложных существительных, которые пишутся как одно слово (POSTcard; PANcake), но могут испытывать трудность с узнаванием сложных существительных, которые пишутся как два отдельных слова (CREDit card; WEDding cake).

Примеры сложных существительных, которые обычно пишутся раздельно, как два слова, даны ниже. Главное ударение на первом слове; второстепенное ударение на втором слове.

футболист; торговец автомобилями

пожарный; дымоуловитель

студент математики; учебник грамматики

зал заседаний; мединститут

минеральная вода; фруктовый сок

свиная отбивная; нож для разделки мяса

сковорода; универмаг

гостиная; электрическая лампочка

вокзал; автобусная остановка

автостоянка; экзамен по вождению

эконом-класс; время отправления

кредитная карточка; сберегательный счёт

сотовый телефон; телефонный звонок

почта; телефонный справочник

группа крови; медосмотр

злоупотребление алкоголем; болезнь сердца

смертный приговор; страхование жизни

фильм ужасов; рассказ с привидениями

давление воздуха; прогноз погоды

Примечание: Правила прибавления окончания мн. числа s/es и апострофа к сложным существительным описаны в материалах Adding the Ending s/es to Nouns and Verbs и Adding the Apostrophe to Nouns в разделе Writing.

Фразовые глаголы с послелогами

Фразовые глаголы с послелогами (с наречными частицами) – это сложные глаголы, в которых оба компонента ударные, обычно с более сильным ударением на послелоге.

развалиться на части; отвернуться

вернуться; войти

сломаться; ворваться

прорваться, пробиться; продолжать

взлететь; выглянуть

подвинуться; отказаться

накладывать косметику; воспитывать (детей)

(Посмотрите примеры с этими фразовыми глаголами в подразделе Phrasal Verbs в разделе Idioms.)

Если от фразового глагола образуется сложное существительное, то главное ударение в нём ставится на первом компоненте, и это существительное обычно пишется как одно слово (слитно) или с дефисом.

побег; возвращение

поломка; прорыв

пункт наблюдения; вид, перспектива

падение; воспитание

косметика; взлёт

Сложные прилагательные

Обе части сложного прилагательного ударные. Более сильное ударение обычно ставится на втором компоненте сложных прилагательных, состоящих из двух слов.

темно-зелёный; светло-коричневый

серо-голубой; ярко-красный

раскалённый докрасна; раскалённый добела

рассеянный; удручённый

старомодный; хладнокровный

хорошо известный; хорошо одетый

с разбитым сердцем; с разбитым сердцем

с лёгким характером

привлекательный; давний, длительный

белоснежный; небесно-голубой

совершенно слепой; ледяной

беспошлинный; неглубокий, поверхностный

созданный человеком; сделанный вручную

полумёртвый; наполовину полный

мнительный; самоуверенный

Примечание: Ударение на существительном

Если в сложном прилагательном один из компонентов существительное, более сильное ударение может падать на существительное, независимо от того, является оно первым или вторым компонентом.

не различающий цвета; водонепроницаемый

высокого класса; скоростной

недорогой; неброский

законопослушный; оглушительный

нестандартного цвета; сомнительный

несбалансированный

страдающий воздушной болезнью; страдающий морской болезнью

Примечание: Дефис со сложными прилагательными

Сложное прилагательное перед определяемым существительным пишется через чёрточку: a dark-blue dress, a reddish-brown rug, a well-known writer, a well-read student (начитанный студент).

Многие сложные прилагательные в положении после глагола-связки пишутся как два отдельных слова, без дефиса. Примеры: Her dress is dark blue. The rug is reddish brown. This writer is well known.

Многие другие сложные прилагательные сохраняют дефис в таких случаях: He is absent-minded and old-fashioned. She is good-looking and good-natured. She is well-read in English poetry.

Сочетания наречий, оканчивающихся на «ly», с прилагательными или причастиями пишутся без дефиса: a widely known fact; entirely white hair; a highly paid lawyer.

Если сложное существительное, которое пишется раздельно, как два слова, употреблено как определение перед другим существительным, такое определение обычно пишется через дефис: a high-school teacher; the living-room window; a parking-lot attendant.

Сложные числительные

В сложных числительных, состоящих из нескольких слов, каждый компонент / каждое слово ударное (кроме «and»); последний компонент получает самое сильное ударение.

Сложные числительные от двадцати одного до девяноста девяти пишутся через дефис. Дроби в функции существительных могут быть с дефисом или без него.

тринадцать; семнадцать

пятнадцатый; восемнадцатый

двадцать три; сорок шесть

пятьдесят семь; девяносто восемь

шестьдесят второй; семьдесят пятый

пятьсот тридцать два

триста тысяч

одна вторая

две третьих

одна двадцать пятая

двадцать три сотых

(Прочитайте ещё о произношении чисел в материале Numbers and Numerals в разделе Miscellany.)

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.

Unicode hyphen

־
Hyphen-minus Non-breaking hyphen Hebrew maqaf

The hyphen is a punctuation mark used to join words and to separate syllables of a single word. The use of hyphens is called hyphenation.[1] Son-in-law is an example of a hyphenated word.

The hyphen is sometimes confused with dashes (en dash and em dash and others), which are longer, or with the minus sign , which is also longer and usually higher up to match the crossbar in the plus sign +.

As an orthographic concept, the hyphen is a single entity. In character encoding it is represented by any of several characters and glyphs, including the Unicode hyphen (shown at the top of the infobox on this page), the hyphen-minus, the soft hyphen, and the nonbreaking hyphen. The character most often used to represent a hyphen (and the one produced by the key on a keyboard) is called the «hyphen-minus» by Unicode, deriving from the original ASCII standard, where it was called «hyphen (minus)».[2]

Etymology[edit]

The word is derived from Ancient Greek ὑφ’ ἕν (huph’ hén), contracted from ὑπό ἕν (hypó hén), «in one» (literally «under one»).[3][4] An (ἡ) ὑφέν ((he) hyphén) was an undertie-like sign written below two adjacent letters to indicate that they belong to the same word when it was necessary to avoid ambiguity, before word spacing was practiced.

Use in English[edit]

The English language does not have definitive hyphenation rules,[5] though various style guides provide detailed usage recommendations and have a significant amount of overlap in what they advise. Hyphens are mostly used to break single words into parts or to join ordinarily separate words into single words. Spaces are not placed between a hyphen and either of the elements it connects except when using a suspended or «hanging» hyphen that stands in for a repeated word (e.g., nineteenth- and twentieth-century writers). Style conventions that apply to hyphens (and dashes) have evolved to support ease of reading in complex constructions; editors often accept deviations if they aid rather than hinder easy comprehension.

The use of the hyphen in English compound nouns and verbs has, in general, been steadily declining. Compounds that might once have been hyphenated are increasingly left with spaces or are combined into one word. Reflecting this changing usage, in 2007, the sixth edition of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary removed the hyphens from 16,000 entries, such as fig-leaf (now fig leaf), pot-belly (now pot belly), and pigeon-hole (now pigeonhole).[6] The increasing prevalence of computer technology and the advent of the Internet have given rise to a subset of common nouns that might have been hyphenated in the past (e.g., toolbar, hyperlink, and pastebin).

Despite decreased use, hyphenation remains the norm in certain compound-modifier constructions and, among some authors, with certain prefixes (see below). Hyphenation is also routinely used as part of syllabification in justified texts to avoid unsightly spacing (especially in columns with narrow line lengths, as when used with newspapers).

Separating[edit]

Justification and line-wrapping[edit]

When flowing text, it is sometimes preferable to break a word into two so that it continues on another line rather than moving the entire word to the next line. The word may be divided at the nearest break point between syllables (syllabification) and a hyphen inserted to indicate that the letters form a word fragment, rather than a full word. This allows more efficient use of paper, allows flush appearance of right-side margins (justification) without oddly large word spaces, and decreases the problem of rivers. This kind of hyphenation is most useful when the width of the column (called the «line length» in typography) is very narrow. For example:

Justified text
without hyphenation
Justified text
with hyphenation

We,       therefore,      the
representatives of the United
States of America …

  

We, therefore, the represen-
tatives of the United States
of America …

Rules (or guidelines) for correct hyphenation vary between languages, and may be complex, and they can interact with other orthographic and typesetting practices. Hyphenation algorithms, when employed in concert[clarification needed] with dictionaries, are sufficient for all but the most formal texts.

It may be necessary to distinguish an incidental line-break hyphen from one integral to a word being mentioned (as when used in a dictionary) or present in an original text being quoted (when in a critical edition), not only to control its word wrap behavior (which encoding handles with hard and soft hyphens having the same glyph) but also to differentiate appearance (with a different glyph). Webster’s Third New International Dictionary[7] and the Chambers Dictionary[8] use a double hyphen for integral hyphens and a single hyphen for line-breaks, whereas Kromhout’s Afrikaans–English dictionary uses the opposite convention.[9] The Concise Oxford Dictionary (fifth edition) suggested repeating an integral hyphen at the start of the following line.[10]

Prefixes and suffixes[edit]

Prefixes (such as de-, pre-, re-, and non-[11]) and suffixes (such as -less, -like, -ness, and -hood) are sometimes hyphenated, especially when the unhyphenated spelling resembles another word or when the affixation is deemed misinterpretable, ambiguous, or somehow «odd-looking» (for example, having two consecutive monographs that look like the digraphs of English, like e+a, e+e, or e+i). However, the unhyphenated style, which is also called closed up or solid, is usually preferred, particularly when the derivative has been relatively familiarized or popularized through extensive use in various contexts. As a rule of thumb, affixes are not hyphenated unless the lack of a hyphen would hurt clarity.

The hyphen may be used between vowel letters (e.g., ee, ea, ei) to indicate that they do not form a digraph. Some words have both hyphenated and unhyphenated variants: de-escalate/deescalate, co-operation/cooperation, re-examine/reexamine, de-emphasize/deemphasize, and so on. Words often lose their hyphen as they become more common, such as email instead of e-mail. When there are tripled letters, the hyphenated variant of these words is often more common (as in shell-like instead of shelllike).

Closed-up style is avoided in some cases: possible homographs, such as recreation (fun or sport) versus re-creation (the act of creating again), retreat (turn back) versus re-treat (give therapy again), and un-ionized (not in ion form) versus unionized (organized into trade unions); combinations with proper nouns or adjectives (un-American, de-Stalinisation);[12][13] acronyms (anti-TNF antibody, non-SI units); or numbers (pre-1949 diplomacy, pre-1492 cartography). Although proto-oncogene is still hyphenated by both Dorland’s and Merriam-Webster’s Medical, the solid (that is, unhyphenated) styling (protooncogene) is a common variant, particularly among oncologists and geneticists.[citation needed]

A diaeresis may also be used in a like fashion, either to separate and mark off monographs (as in coöperation) or to signalize a vocalic terminal e (for example, Brontë). This use of the diaeresis peaked in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, but it was never applied extensively across the language: only a handful of diaereses, including coöperation and Brontë, are encountered with any appreciable frequency in English; thus reëxamine, reïterate, deëmphasize, etc. are seldom encountered. In borrowings from Modern French, whose orthography utilizes the diaeresis as a means to differentiate graphemes, various English dictionaries list the dieresis as optional (as in naive and naïve) despite the juxtaposition of a and i.[citation needed]

Syllabification and spelling[edit]

Hyphens are occasionally used to denote syllabification, as in syl-la-bi-fi-ca-tion. Various British and North American dictionaries use an interpunct, sometimes called a «middle dot» or «hyphenation point», for this purpose, as in syl·la·bi·fi·ca·tion. This allows the hyphen to be reserved only for places where a hard hyphen is intended (for example, self-con·scious, un·self-con·scious, long-stand·ing). Similarly, hyphens may be used to indicate how a word is being or should be spelled. For example, W-O-R-D spells «word».

In nineteenth-century American literature, hyphens were also used irregularly to divide syllables in words from indigenous North American languages, without regard for etymology or pronunciation,[14] such as «Shuh-shuh-gah» (from Ojibwe zhashagi, «blue heron») in The Song of Hiawatha.[15] This usage is now rare and proscribed, except in some place names such as Ah-gwah-ching.

Joining[edit]

Compound modifiers[edit]

Compound modifiers are groups of two or more words that jointly modify the meaning of another word. When a compound modifier other than an adverb–adjective combination appears before a term, the compound modifier is often hyphenated to prevent misunderstanding, such as in American-football player or little-celebrated paintings. Without the hyphen, there is potential confusion about whether the writer means a «player of American football» or an «American player of football» and whether the writer means paintings that are «little celebrated» or «celebrated paintings» that are little.[16] Compound modifiers can extend to three or more words, as in ice-cream-flavored candy, and can be adverbial as well as adjectival (spine-tinglingly frightening). However, if the compound is a familiar one, it is usually unhyphenated. For example, some style guides prefer the construction high school students, to high-school students.[17][18] Although the expression is technically ambiguous («students of a high school»/»school students who are high»), it would normally be formulated differently if other than the first meaning were intended. Noun–noun compound modifiers may also be written without a hyphen when no confusion is likely: grade point average and department store manager.[18]

When a compound modifier follows the term to which it applies, a hyphen is typically not used if the compound is a temporary compound. For example, «that gentleman is well respected», not «that gentleman is well-respected»; or «a patient-centered approach was used» but «the approach was patient centered.»[19] But permanent compounds, found as headwords in dictionaries, are treated as invariable, so if they are hyphenated in the cited dictionary, the hyphenation will be used in both attributive and predicative positions. For example, «A cost-effective method was used» and «The method was cost-effective» (cost-effective is a permanent compound that is hyphenated as a headword in various dictionaries). When one of the parts of the modifier is a proper noun or a proper adjective, there is no hyphen (e.g., «a South American actor»).[20]

When the first modifier in a compound is an adverb ending in -ly (e.g., «a poorly written novel»), various style guides advise no hyphen.[20][additional citation(s) needed] However, some do allow for this use. For example, The Economist Style Guide advises: «Adverbs do not need to be linked to participles or adjectives by hyphens in simple constructions … Less common adverbs, including all those that end -ly, are less likely to need hyphens.»[21] In the 19th century, it was common to hyphenate adverb–adjective modifiers with the adverb ending in -ly (e.g., «a craftily-constructed chair»). However, this has become rare. For example, wholly owned subsidiary and quickly moving vehicle are unambiguous, because the adverbs clearly modify the adjectives: «quickly» cannot modify «vehicle».

However, if an adverb can also function as an adjective, then a hyphen may be or should be used for clarity, depending on the style guide.[13] For example, the phrase more-important reasons («reasons that are more important») is distinguished from more important reasons («additional important reasons»), where more is an adjective. Similarly, more-beautiful scenery (with a mass-noun) is distinct from more beautiful scenery. (In contrast, the hyphen in «a more-important reason» is not necessary, because the syntax cannot be misinterpreted.) A few short and common words—such as well, ill, little, and much—attract special attention in this category.[21] The hyphen in «well-[past_participled] noun», such as in «well-differentiated cells», might reasonably be judged superfluous (the syntax is unlikely to be misinterpreted), yet plenty of style guides call for it. Because early has both adverbial and adjectival senses, its hyphenation can attract attention; some editors, due to comparison with advanced-stage disease and adult-onset disease, like the parallelism of early-stage disease and early-onset disease. Similarly, the hyphen in little-celebrated paintings clarifies that one is not speaking of little paintings.

Hyphens are usually used to connect numbers and words in modifying phrases. Such is the case when used to describe dimensional measurements of weight, size, and time, under the rationale that, like other compound modifiers, they take hyphens in attributive position (before the modified noun),[22] although not in predicative position (after the modified noun). This is applied whether numerals or words are used for the numbers. Thus 28-year-old woman and twenty-eight-year-old woman or 32-foot wingspan and thirty-two-foot wingspan, but the woman is 28 years old and a wingspan of 32 feet.[a] However, with symbols for SI units (such as m or kg)—in contrast to the names of these units (such as metre or kilogram)—the numerical value is always separated from it with a space: a 25 kg sphere. When the unit names are spelled out, this recommendation does not apply: a 25-kilogram sphere, a roll of 35-millimetre film.[23]

In spelled-out fractions, hyphens are usually used when the fraction is used as an adjective but not when it is used as a noun: thus two-thirds majority[a] and one-eighth portion but I drank two thirds of the bottle or I kept three quarters of it for myself.[24] However, at least one major style guide[22] hyphenates spelled-out fractions invariably (whether adjective or noun).

In English, an en dash, , sometimes replaces the hyphen in hyphenated compounds if either of its constituent parts is already hyphenated or contains a space (for example, San Francisco–area residents, hormone receptor–positive cells, cell cycle–related factors, and public-school–private-school rivalries).[25] A commonly used alternative style is the hyphenated string (hormone-receptor-positive cells, cell-cycle-related factors). (For other aspects of en dash–versus–hyphen use, see Dash § En dash.)

Object–verbal-noun compounds[edit]

When an object is compounded with a verbal noun, such as egg-beater (a tool that beats eggs), the result is sometimes hyphenated. Some authors do this consistently, others only for disambiguation; in this case, egg-beater, egg beater, and eggbeater are all common.

An example of an ambiguous phrase appears in they stood near a group of alien lovers, which without a hyphen implies that they stood near a group of lovers who were aliens; they stood near a group of alien-lovers clarifies that they stood near a group of people who loved aliens, as «alien» can be either an adjective or a noun. On the other hand, in the phrase a hungry pizza-lover, the hyphen will often be omitted (a hungry pizza lover), as «pizza» cannot be an adjective and the phrase is therefore unambiguous.

Similarly, a man-eating shark is nearly the opposite of a man eating shark; the first refers to a shark that eats people, and the second to a man who eats shark meat. A government-monitoring program is a program that monitors the government, whereas a government monitoring program is a government program that monitors something else.

Personal names[edit]

Some married couples compose a new surname (sometimes referred to as a double-barrelled name) for their new family by combining their two surnames with a hyphen. Jane Doe and John Smith might become Jane and John Smith-Doe, or Doe-Smith, for instance. In some countries only the woman hyphenates her birth surname, appending her husband’s surname.

With already-hyphenated names, some parts are typically dropped. For example, Aaron Johnson and Samantha Taylor-Wood became Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Sam Taylor-Johnson. Not all hyphenated surnames are the result of marriage. For example Julia Louis-Dreyfus is a descendant of Louis Lemlé Dreyfus whose son was Léopold Louis-Dreyfus.

Other compounds[edit]

Connecting hyphens are used in a large number of miscellaneous compounds, other than modifiers, such as in lily-of-the-valley, cock-a-hoop, clever-clever, tittle-tattle and orang-utan. Use is often dictated by convention rather than fixed rules, and hyphenation styles may vary between authors; for example, orang-utan is also written as orangutan or orang utan, and lily-of-the-valley may be hyphenated or not.

Suspended hyphens[edit]

A suspended hyphen (also called a suspensive hyphen or hanging hyphen, or less commonly a dangling or floating hyphen) may be used when a single base word is used with separate, consecutive, hyphenated words that are connected by «and», «or», or «to». For example, short-term and long-term plans may be written as short- and long-term plans. This usage is now common and specifically recommended in some style guides.[18] Suspended hyphens are also used, though less commonly, when the base word comes first, such as in «investor-owned and -operated«. Uses such as «applied and sociolinguistics» (instead of «applied linguistics and sociolinguistics») are frowned upon; the Indiana University style guide uses this example and says «Do not ‘take a shortcut’ when the first expression is ordinarily open» (i.e., ordinarily two separate words).[18] This is different, however, from instances where prefixes that are normally closed up (styled solidly) are used suspensively. For example, preoperative and postoperative becomes pre- and postoperative (not pre- and post-operative) when suspended. Some editors prefer to avoid suspending such pairs, choosing instead to write out both words in full.[22]

Other uses[edit]

A hyphen may be used to connect groups of numbers, such as in dates (see below), telephone numbers or sports scores. It can also be used to indicate a range of values, although many styles prefer an en dash (see examples at Dash § En dash §§ Ranges of values).

The hyphen is sometimes used to hide letters in words (filleting for redaction or censoring), as in G-d, although an en dash can be used as well («G–d»).

The hyphen is often used in reduplicatives.

Varied meanings[edit]

Some stark examples of semantic changes caused by the placement of hyphens to mark attributive phrases:

  • Disease-causing poor nutrition is poor nutrition that causes disease.
    • Disease causing poor nutrition is a disease that causes poor nutrition.
  • A hard-working man is a man who works hard.
    • A hard working man is a working man who is tough.
  • A man-eating shark is a shark that eats humans.
    • A man eating shark is a man who is eating shark meat.
  • Three-hundred-year-old trees are an indeterminate number of trees that are each 300 years old.
    • Three hundred-year-old trees are three trees that are each 100 years old.
    • Three hundred year-old trees are 300 trees that are each a year old.

Origin and history[edit]

The first known documentation of the hyphen is in the grammatical works of Dionysius Thrax. At the time hyphenation was joining two words that would otherwise be read separately by a low tie mark between the two words.[26] In Greek these marks were known as enotikon, officially romanized as a hyphen.[27]

With the introduction of letter-spacing in the Middle Ages, the hyphen, still written beneath the text, reversed its meaning. Scribes used the mark to connect two words that had been incorrectly separated by a space. This era also saw the introduction of the marginal hyphen, for words broken across lines.[28]

The modern format of the hyphen originated with Johannes Gutenberg of Mainz, Germany, c. 1455 with the publication of his 42-line Bible. His tools did not allow for a sublinear hyphen, and he thus moved it to the middle of the line.[29] Examination of an original copy on vellum (Hubay index #35) in the U. S. Library of Congress shows that Gutenberg’s movable type was set justified in a uniform style, 42 equal lines per page. The Gutenberg printing press required words made up of individual letters of type to be held in place by a surrounding nonprinting rigid frame. Gutenberg solved the problem of making each line the same length to fit the frame by inserting a hyphen as the last element at the right-side margin. This interrupted the letters in the last word, requiring the remaining letters be carried over to the start of the line below. His double hyphen appears throughout the Bible as a short, double line inclined to the right at a 60-degree angle: [citation needed]

Use in computing [edit]

Hyphen-minuses[edit]

In the ASCII character encoding, the hyphen (or minus) is character 4510.[30] As Unicode is identical to ASCII (the 1967 version) for all encodings up to 12710, the number 4510 (2D16) is also assigned to this character in Unicode, where it is denoted as U+002D HYPHEN-MINUS.[31] Unicode has, in addition, other encodings for minus and hyphen characters: U+2212 MINUS SIGN and U+2010 HYPHEN, respectively. The unambiguous hyphen at U+2010 is generally inconvenient to enter on most keyboards and the glyphs for this hyphen and the hyphen-minus are identical in most fonts (Lucida Sans Unicode is one of the few exceptions). Consequently, use of the hyphen-minus as the hyphen character is very common. Even the Unicode Standard regularly uses the hyphen-minus rather than this hyphen.

The hyphen-minus has limited use in indicating subtraction; for example, compare 4+3−2=5 (minus) and 4+3-2=5 (hyphen-minus) — in most fonts, the hyphen-minus will not have the optimal width, thickness, or vertical position, whereas the minus character will. Nevertheless, in many spreadsheet and programming applications the hyphen-minus must be typed to indicate subtraction, as use of the Unicode minus sign will produce an error.

The hyphen-minus is often used instead of dashes or minus signs in situations where the latter characters are unavailable (such as type-written or ASCII-only text), where they take effort to enter (via dialog boxes or multi-key keyboard shortcuts), or when the writer is unaware of the distinction. Consequently, some writers use two hyphen-minuses -- to represent an em dash.[32] In the TeX typesetting languages, a single hyphen-minus (-) renders a hyphen, a single hyphen-minus in math mode ($-$) renders a minus sign, two hyphen-minuses (--) renders an en dash, and three hyphen-minuses (---) renders an em dash.

The hyphen-minus character is also often used when specifying command-line options. The character is usually followed by one or more letters that indicate specific actions. Typically it is called a dash or switch in this context. Various implementations of the getopt function to parse command-line options additionally allow the use of two hyphen-minus characters, --, to specify long option names that are more descriptive than their single-letter equivalents. Another use of hyphens is that employed by programs written with pipelining in mind: a single hyphen may be recognized in lieu of a filename, with the hyphen then serving as an indicator that a standard stream, instead of a file, is to be worked with.

Soft and hard hyphens[edit]

Although software (hyphenation algorithms) can often automatically make decisions on when to hyphenate a word at a line break, it is also sometimes useful for the user to be able to insert cues for those decisions (which are dynamic in the online medium, given that text can be reflowed). For this purpose, the concept of a soft hyphen (discretionary hyphen, optional hyphen) was introduced, allowing such manual specification of a place where a hyphenated break is allowed but not forced. That is, it does not force a line break in an inconvenient place when the text is later reflowed.

Soft hyphens are inserted into the text at the positions where hyphenation may occur. It can be a tedious task to insert the soft hyphens by hand, and tools using hyphenation algorithms are available that do this automatically. Current modules[which?] of the Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) standard provide language-specific hyphenation dictionaries.

Some (OpenType) fonts will change the character at the end of a word. An example is a font that places a long s, ‘ſ ’, everywhere except at the end of a word, where a round s, ‘s’, is used. A soft hyphen can be used to change the previous letter to a round s in the middle of a word. For example, ‘prinſeſſen’ can be corrected by inserting a soft hyphen between the ‘ſ ’s: ‘prinſeſ-ſen’ becomes ‘prinſesſen’ (which is correct in Norwegian).

In contrast, a hyphen that is always displayed and printed is called a «hard hyphen». This can be a Unicode hyphen, a hyphen-minus, or a nonbreaking hyphen (see below). Confusingly, the term is sometimes limited to nonbreaking hyphens.[citation needed]

Nonbreaking hyphens[edit]

The non-breaking hyphen, nonbreaking hyphen, or no-break hyphen looks identical to the regular hyphen, but word processors treat it as a letter so that the hyphenated word will not be divided at the hyphen should this fall at what would be the end of a line of text; instead, either the whole hyphenated word will remain in full at the end of the line or it will go in full to the beginning of the next line. The nonbreaking space exists for similar reasons.

The word segmentation rules of most text systems consider a hyphen to be a word boundary and a valid point at which to break a line when flowing text. However, this is not always desirable behavior, especially when it could lead to ambiguity (e.g. retreat and re‑treat would be indistinguishable with a line break after re), or in languages other than English (e.g., a line break at the hyphen in Irish an t‑athair or Romanian s‑a would be undesirable). The nonbreaking hyphen addresses this need.

Usage in date notation[edit]

Use of hyphens to delineate the parts of a written date (rather than the slashes used conventionally in Anglophone countries) is specified in the international standard ISO 8601. Thus, for example, 1789-07-14 is the standard way of writing the date of Bastille Day. This standard has been transposed as European Standard EN 28601 and has been incorporated into various national typographic style guides (e.g., DIN 5008 in Germany). Now all official European Union (and many member state) documents use this style. This is also the typical date format used in large parts of Europe and Asia, although sometimes with other separators than the hyphen.

This method has gained influence within North America, as most common computer file systems make the use of slashes in file names difficult or impossible. DOS, OS/2 and Windows use / to introduce and separate switches to shell commands, and on both Windows and Unix-like systems slashes in a filename introduce subdirectories which may not be desirable. Besides encouraging use of dashes, the Y-M-D order and zero-padding of numbers less than 10 are also copied from ISO 8601 to make the filenames sort by date order.

Unicode[edit]

Apart from dash and minus sign, Unicode has multiple hyphen characters:[33]

  • U+002D HYPHEN-MINUS, a character of multiple uses
  • U+00AD SOFT HYPHEN (HTML ­)[b]
  • U+2010 UNICODE HYPHEN (HTML ‐ or ‐)[c]
  • U+2011 NON-BREAKING HYPHEN
  • U+2E5D OBLIQUE HYPHEN for medieval texts[35]

And in non-Latin scripts:[33]

  • U+058A ֊ ARMENIAN HYPHEN
  • U+05BE ־ HEBREW PUNCTUATION MAQAF
  • U+1806 MONGOLIAN TODO SOFT HYPHEN
  • U+1B60 BALINESE PAMENENG (used only as a line-breaking hyphen)
  • U+2E17 DOUBLE OBLIQUE HYPHEN (used in ancient Near-Eastern linguistics and in blackletter typefaces)
  • U+30FB KATAKANA MIDDLE DOT (has the Unicode property of «Hyphen» despite its name)
  • U+FE63 SMALL HYPHEN-MINUS (compatibility character for a small hyphen-minus, used in East Asian typography)
  • U+FF0D FULLWIDTH HYPHEN-MINUS (compatibility character for a wide hyphen-minus, used in East Asian typography)
  • U+FF65 HALFWIDTH KATAKANA MIDDLE DOT (compatibility character for a wide katakana middle dot, has the Unicode property of «Hyphen» despite its name)

Unicode distinguishes the hyphen from the general interpunct. The characters below do not have the Unicode property of «Hyphen» despite their names:[33]

  • U+1400 CANADIAN SYLLABICS HYPHEN
  • U+2027 HYPHENATION POINT
  • U+2043 HYPHEN BULLET (HTML ⁃)
  • U+2E1A HYPHEN WITH DIAERESIS
  • U+2E40 DOUBLE HYPHEN
  • U+30A0 KATAKANA-HIRAGANA DOUBLE HYPHEN
  • U+10EAD 𐺭 YEZIDI HYPHENATION MARK

(See interpunct and bullet (typography) for more round characters.)

See also[edit]

  • Double hyphen
  • French orthography#Hyphens
  • Hyphen War
  • Papyrological hyphen: equivalent in pre-modern Greek
  • Enhypen — South Korean boy band whose name derives from the hyphen symbol

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ a b With numbers, where a plural noun would normally be used in an unhyphenated predicative position, the singular form of the noun is generally used in the hyphenated form used attributively. Thus a woman who is 28 years old becomes a 28-year-old woman. There are occasional exceptions to this general rule, for instance with fractions (a two-thirds majority) and irregular plurals (a two-criteria review, a two-teeth bridge).
  2. ^ The Soft hyphen serves as an invisible marker used to specify a place in text where a hyphenated break is allowed without forcing a line break in an inconvenient place if the text is reflowed. It becomes visible only after word wrapping at the end of a line.
  3. ^ The Unicode Hyphen U+2010 is seldom used. Even the Unicode Standard uses U+002D instead of U+2010 in its text.[34]

References[edit]

  1. ^ «Hyphen Definition». dictionary.com. Retrieved 18 June 2015.
  2. ^ «American National Standard X3.4-1977: American Standard Code for Information Interchange» (PDF). National Institute of Standards and Technology. p. 10 (4.2 Graphic characters).
  3. ^ ὑφέν. Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; A Greek–English Lexicon at the Perseus Project.
  4. ^ Harper, Douglas. «hyphen». Online Etymology Dictionary.
  5. ^ Wroe, Ann, ed. (2015). The Economist Style Guide (11th ed.). London / New York: Profile Books / PublicAffairs. p. 74. hyphens  There is no firm rule to help you decide which words are run together, hyphenated or left separate.
  6. ^ «Small object of grammatical desire». BBC News. London: British Broadcasting Corporation. 20 September 2007..
  7. ^ Gove, Philip Babcock (1993). Webster’s Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged. Merriam-Webster. p. 14a, § 1.6.1. ISBN 978-0-87779-201-7. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  8. ^ Chambers, Allied (2006). The Chambers Dictionary. Allied Publishers. p. xxxviii, § 8. ISBN 978-8186062258. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  9. ^ Kromhout, Jan (2001). Afrikaans–English, English–Afrikaans Dictionary. Hippocrene Books. p. 182, § 5. ISBN 978-0-7818-0846-0. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  10. ^ Hartmann, R. Rf. K. (1986). The History of Lexicography: Papers from the Dictionary Research Centre Seminar at Exeter, March 1986. John Benjamins Publishing. p. 9. ISBN 978-9027245236.
  11. ^ A fairly comprehensive list, although not exhaustive, is given at Prefix > List of English derivational prefixes.
  12. ^ «Hyphenated Words: A Guide», The Grammar Curmudgeon, City slide.
  13. ^ a b «Hyphens», Punctuation, Grammar book.
  14. ^ Liberman, Mark. «American Indian Hyphens». Language Log.
  15. ^ Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth. The Song of Hiawatha.
  16. ^ Gary Blake and Robert W. Bly, The Elements of Technical Writing, p. 48. New York: Macmillan Publishers, 1993. ISBN 0020130856
  17. ^ E.g. «H». Bloomberg School Style Manual. Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  18. ^ a b c d E.g. «H». The IU editorial style guide. Indiana University. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  19. ^ Davis, John (30 November 2004). «Using Hyphens in Compound Adjectives (and Exceptions to the Rule)» (Grammar tip). UHV. Archived from the original on 9 January 2010. Retrieved 5 January 2010.
  20. ^ a b «Hyphenated Compound Words». englishplus.com. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
  21. ^ a b Wroe, Ann, ed. (2015). The Economist Style Guide (11th ed.). London / New York: Profile Books / PublicAffairs. pp. 77–78. hyphens   … 12. Adverbs: Adverbs do not need to be linked to participles or adjectives by hyphens in simple constructions [examples elided]. But if the adverb is one of two words together being used adjectivally, a hyphen may be needed [examples elided]. The hyphen is especially likely to be needed if the adverb is short and common, such as ill, little, much and well. Less common adverbs, including all those that end -ly, are less likely to need hyphens [example elided].
  22. ^ a b c Iverson, Cheryl (2007). «8.3.1». AMA Manual of Style (10th ed.). Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-517633-9.
  23. ^ Bureau international des poids et mesures, Le Système international d’unités (SI) / The International System of Units (SI), 9th ed. (Sèvres: 2019), ISBN 978-92-822-2272-0, sub§5.4.3, p. 149; «Guide for the Use of the International System of Units (SI)», NIST Special Publication 811, National Institute of Standards and Technology, March 2008.
  24. ^ American Psychological Association (APA) (2010), The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.), Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, ISBN 978-1-4338-0562-2.
  25. ^ Gary Lutz; Diane Stevenson (2005). The Writer’s Digest grammar desk reference. Writer’s Digest Books. p. 296. ISBN 978-1-58297-335-7.
  26. ^ Nicolas, Nick. «Greek Unicode Issues: Punctuation Archived 6 August 2012 at archive.today». 2005. Accessed 7 October 2014.
  27. ^ Ελληνικός Οργανισμός Τυποποίησης [Ellīnikós Organismós Typopoíīsīs, «Hellenic Organization for Standardization»]. ΕΛΟΤ 743, 2η Έκδοση [ELOT 743, 2ī Ekdosī, «ELOT 743, 2nd ed.«]. ELOT (Athens), 2001. (in Greek)
  28. ^ Keith Houston (2013). Shady Characters: The Secret Life of Punctuation, Symbols, and Other Typographical Marks. W.W. Norton & Company. p. 121. ISBN 978-0-393-06442-1.
  29. ^ Keith Houston (2013). Shady Characters: The Secret Life of Punctuation, Symbols, and Other Typographical Marks. W.W. Norton & Company. p. 132. ISBN 978-0-393-06442-1.
  30. ^ Haralambous, Yannis (2007). «ASCII». Fonts & Encodings. O’Reilly Media. p. 29. ISBN 978-0596102425.
  31. ^ «3.1 General scripts» (PDF). Unicode Version 1.0 · Character Blocks. p. 30. Loose vs. Precise Semantics. Some ASCII characters have multiple uses, either through ambiguity in the original standards or through accumulated reinterpretations of a limited codeset. For example, 27 hex is defined in ANSI X3.4 as apostrophe (closing single quotation mark; acute accent), and 2D hex as hyphen minus.
  32. ^ Bringhurst, Robert (2004). The elements of typographic style (third ed.). Hartley & Marks, Publishers. p. 80. ISBN 978-0-88179-206-5. Retrieved 10 November 2020. In typescript, a double hyphen (—) is often used for a long dash. Double hyphens in a typeset document are a sure sign that the type was set by a typist, not a typographer. A typographer will use an em dash, three-quarter em, or en dash, depending on context or personal style. The em dash is the nineteenth-century standard, still prescribed in many editorial style books, but the em dash is too long for use with the best text faces. Like the oversized space between sentences, it belongs to the padded and corseted aesthetic of Victorian typography.
  33. ^ a b c «Unicode 15.0 UCD: PropList.txt». 5 August 2022. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
  34. ^ Korpela, Jukka K. (December 2020). «Dashes and hyphens». IT and Communication.
  35. ^ Everson, Michael (12 January 2021). «L2/21-036 Proposal to add the OBLIQUE HYPHEN» (PDF). Retrieved 19 September 2022.

External links[edit]

Look up hyphen in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

  • Wiktionary list of English phrases spelled with a hyphen
  • Economist Style Guide—Hyphens
  • Using hyphens in English; rules and recommendations
  • Jukka Korpela, Soft hyphen (SHY)—a hard problem? (See also his article on word breaking, line breaks, and special characters (including hyphens) in HTML.)
  • Markus Kuhn, Unicode interpretation of SOFT HYPHEN breaks ISO 8859-1 compatibility. Unicode Technical Committee document L2/03-155R, June 2003.
  • United States Government Printing Office Style Manual 2000 6. Compounding Rules]

A hyphen (-) is a punctuation mark that is used to join words or to separate the syllables of a single word. It’s not like a simple dash or something. It is usually used with a compound modifier when the modifier comes before the word it’s modifying. If you don’t know what compound modifier is then let me tell you it is a compound of two or more attributive words: that is, two or more words that collectively modify a noun.

Let’s a Hyphens’ main purpose is to glue words together. They notify the reader that two or more elements in a sentence are linked. Although there are rules and customs governing hyphens, there are also situations when writers must decide whether to add them for clarity.

Hyphens’ main objective is to glue all the words together and to make the reader understand that how elements are linked in a sentence. People tend to use it wrongly most of the times, for this purpose let’s see some of the simple rules for suing a Hyphen.

1. Hyphen with Two-Word Adjectives before Nouns

Using hyphens to connect words is easy but choosing the appropriate words which makes sense is difficult. A compound modifier is made up of two words that work together to act like an adjective so when you connect it through a hyphen it makes a sense to the readers as a one unit meaning.

Examples:

  • Don’t take down any load-bearing walls when renovating.
  • This rock-hard cake is absolutely impossible to eat.

So, generally hyphen is used when two words are functioning together as an adjective before the noun. If the noun comes first then leave the hyphen out.

So, you don’t need a hyphen in the following:

Examples:

  • This wall is load bearing.
  • It’s impossible to eat this cake because it is rock hard.

Plus there is one more thing, you also don’t need a hyphen when your modifier is made up of an adverb and an adjective.

  • Do you expect me to believe this clearly-impossible story? (Incorrect)

Do you expect me to believe this clearly impossible story? (Correct)

2. Hyphens with Participles

When we combine a noun or adjective and a present participle to form a unit of meaning that describes another word, use a hyphen to make that unit of meaning clear.

Examples:

  • There are some beautiful looking flowers in the garden. (Incorrect)

There are some beautiful-looking flowers in the garden. (Correct)

  • Fast-acting medication can be useful when one has a headache. (Incorrect, because don’t use a hyphen when the modifier comes after the noun its describing).

This medication is fast acting. (Correct)

  • The room was like a heavily-decorated chocolate box. (Incorrect, don’t use a hyphen when you are combining an adverb and a participle.

The room was like a heavily decorated chocolate box. (Correct)

3. Hyphen in a Compound Expression With a Noun and Past Participle

Compound modifiers that contain a past participle also follow the same rules as any other compound modifier. Use a hyphen when the compound goes before the verb it modifies:

Examples:

  • The municipal government is funding a community-based education system.
  • Wind-powered generators can be excellent sources of electricity.
  • Many veterinarians find meat-fed cats to be quite healthy.
  • A well-known local singer will perform tonight.

Remember one more thing, that don’t use a hyphen when the compound comes after the noun it describes.

Examples:

  • The singer performing tonight is well known.
  1. Hyphenated Compound Words

Hyphenated compound words are the ones with a hyphen between the words. Over time, many hyphenated compounds become closed compounds like teen-ager became teenager for instance. Check a dictionary if you are not sure whether to use a hyphen or not. Here are a few examples of common hyphenated compound words:

Examples:

  • Father-in-law
  • Master-at-arms
  • Editor-in-chief-
  • Ten-year-old
  • Factory-made
  • Seven-pack
  1. Closed Compound Words

Hyphenated words will, in general, become the closed compound words (single words without any hyphens) after some time. Email rather than e-mail, for instance, is progressively normal. On the off chance that you aren’t sure whether a word is a closed compound or a hyphenated one.

Examples:

  • Notebook
  • Superman
  • Waistcoat
  • Bookstore
  • Fireman
  1. Open Compound Words

Open compounds are normally comprised of two nouns that are utilized together to speak to a solitary thought. “Open” implies that there is a space between the two words and no hyphen. A decent word reference is the best place to check whether a compound is open or not.

Examples:

  • Living room
  • Real estate
  • Dinner table
  • Coffee mug

7. Hyphens and Numbers

Numbers between twenty-one and ninety-nine should be hyphenated when they are spelled out as it is one of the followed rules.

Examples:

  • Fifty-six bottles of pop on the wall, fifty-six bottles of cold drink, etc.
  • No, I won’t party “like it’s nineteen ninety-nine.”
  • I’ve got a hundred and twenty-two of these gizmos to sell.

8.  Hyphen in Compound Adjective with Numbers

At the point when numbers are utilized as the initial segment of a compound descriptive word, utilize a hyphen to interface them to the thing that tails them. Along these lines, the perusers realizes that the two words work like a unit to adjust another thing. This applies whether the number is composed in words or in digits. When numbers are used as the first part of a compound adjective, use a hyphen to connect them to the noun that follows them. This way, the reader knows that both words function like a unit to modify another noun. This applies whether the number is written in words or in digits.

Examples:

  • The president of the company gave a 10-minute speech to the Board of Directors.
  • He is knowledgeable in thirteenth-century politics.
  • The boy threw a rock at the second-story window.

However, a hyphen is not required if the number is the second word in the compound adjective.

Examples:

  • He is a victim of Type 2 diabetes.
  • This elevator doesn’t go down to Basement 3.
  • The president of the company gave a 10-minute speech to the Board of Directors.
  • He is knowledgeable in thirteenth-century politics.
  • The boy threw a rock at the second-story window.

However, a hyphen is not required if the number is the second word in the compound adjective.

Examples:

  • He is a victim of Type 2 diabetes.
  • This elevator doesn’t go down to Basement 3.

9. Hyphen in Compound Adjective with Fractions

When using a fraction (e.g. half or quarter) as part of a compound adjective, it should be hyphenated so the reader understands which fraction is modifying which noun.

Examples:

  • I half-wanted to commit a felony.
  • A quarter-million dollars is still a large amount of money.
  • You’ll need one-third of a pound of flour and one egg.
  • That’s a half-baked idea if I ever heard one!
  • I half-wanted to commit a suicide.
  • A quarter-million dollars is still a large amount of money.
  • You’ll need one-third of a pound of flour and one egg.

10. Hyphen with Prefixes: Ex-, Self-, All-

Use a hyphen with the prefix ex- (meaning former).

Examples:

  • Don’t sit Adam next to Martha! She’s his ex-wife!
  • Though he no longer held an official position, the ex-mayor still attended all the town’s functions.

Use a hyphen with the reflexive prefix self-.

Examples:

  • Lying on the floor beside the plant he had knocked over and chewed on, the cat looked extremely self-satisfied.
  • Do you want a self-serve or a full-serve gas station?

Make sure you don’t confuse the prefix self- with the noun self.

Examples:

  • The self serves no other.
  • When using all as a prefix, add a hyphen.
  • It’s a bad leader who thinks of himself as all-powerful.

When using high or low as part of a compound adjective, use a hyphen when the compound comes before the noun it’s modifying. Some examples of compound adjectives using high and low include high-level/low-level and high-impact/low-impact

Examples:

  • Low-flying airplanes contribute to the noise pollution in the area.
  • This car runs best on high-octane gasoline.
  • Low-income families often face more stress than their higher-income counterparts.
  • A high-interest savings account is one of the best ways to save money.

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