Two hyphens typed together form a dash: (--). En-dash: An en-dash is wider than a hyphen but narrower than an em-dash. Proper use of punctuation marks can greatly enhance the readability and effectiveness of written communication. C-----. There are two types of dash. Consider the difference between the sentence above and the one. Informally, they separate comments that stray from the central idea of the sentence. The em dash is used to represent how the first speaker is being interrupted by the second. Enclose the first part of the dialogue in quotation marks but omit the comma. In AP style, the dash should be set off with spaces on both sides. The question mark can be followed with a dash where necessary: He left—would you believe it?—immediately after the ball. The en dash is a punctuation mark that is slightly longer than a hyphen (-) but shorter than an em dash (—). Don’t overthink it—let intuition guide you. And be careful to not mix different punctuation marks. Your example is (almost) a perfect illustration. ”. As an outcome those characters are generated in the excel as shown below, which contains a kind of question mark. A space is used before and after the en-dash when used in literary copy. The Oxford Learner’s Dictionary defines a dash as “the mark (—) used to separate parts of a sentence. Em dashes (—) are extremely versatile. It doesn't. Look at how the entire sentence uses different punctuation marks. They are named en dashes but they are as wide as the letter N. According to the Wikipedia article "Quotation mark" (section "Quotation dash"):. Collingwood as Mr. To create an em-dash on a Windows computer, hold down the [Alt] key and type 0151 on the numeric keypad. Identify the sentence that is punctuated correctly. The raya (em-dash) usually indicates separation; for example, it signals interventions of. In your example sentence, the question is really only complete at the very end, so the first. Learn more about punctuation. 89: "In modern usage, a question mark or an exclamation point—but never a comma, a colon, or a semicolon—may. 2. The em dash is treated like a question mark or an exclamation mark, which are both followed by the closing. It’s a long dash, the length of two connected hyphens. It’s longer than a hyphen and is commonly used to indicate a range or a pause. Hence, 12/5/2010 means December 5, 2010, in American usage. Dashes might look like hyphens, but they aren’t the same. You create an em-dash by typing two hyphens, and most word processing programs will tie them automatically into the longer dash. Comments. 1. . Note: An en dash is slightly longer than a hyphen. In Unicode, the em dash is U+2014 (decimal 8212). Or simply type two hyphens one after the other, type the word that is supposed to appear after the em dash, and press Space—the hyphens magically turn into an em dash. And like a colon, it can introduce a word or a clause that describes or expands upon what precedes it. The en dash is a symbol (–) that is slightly wider than a hyphen (-). 1)”Can we go to the cinema?” she asked. The Chicago Manual of Style says that “periods and commas precede closing quotation marks. At the word level, hyphens differentiate parts of words to help in readability. The em dash does not mean pause. F. Dashes. See wikipedia. fiscal year 2020–21. When a character has a sudden change of thought while speaking, an em dash is the correct punctuation to show the break. It is slightly shorter in length, visually resembling a hyphen, but with different usage. ” The longer em dash (—) is used to separate extra information or mark a break in a sentence. — Question Mark. style guides frequently recommend using em dashes for the purposes above, while using en dashes for ranges, etc. For instance, you would render a character named Mr. On the other hand, the em-dash works in full sentences and can take the place of commas, colons, and. “What space?”. The em dash should be used sparingly in your writing. If you’re looking for the answer — or just wondering what an em dash is — learn how (and when) to use an em dash correctly here. Overuse of any tool will make your writing inelegant, but using the proper tool at the right time will help you generate pages that are well crafted and precisely assembled. So I wouldn't say that the dash as an actor can perform the same roles as terminal punctuation, as periods or question marks or exclamation points, but. Although en dashes look similar to hyphens, they have a specific purpose and meaning – en dashes connect words in place of the word “to” or “through”. A dash can usually be distinguished from a hyphen in print by its greater length. Below are lines of five each of em dashes, en dashes, minuses, and hyphens, all separated by a normal space. An en-dash is also used as a minus sign as in –10°F. Some authorities include a space between the uncertain word and the opening parenthesis; others omit the space (as shown in the example below). To type an en dash, press Option + hyphen (-) To type an em dash on keyboard, press Shift + Option + hyphen (-) The only problem is that to use. Or. 1 Answer. Use the en dash ("short dash") to join inclusive numbers:. If the action is in the middle of a sentence, use em dashes outside the quotation marks. 🙽. ”. g. An em-dash can be used alone, as in this example from the online The Punctuation Guide: After months of deliberation, the jurors reached a unanimous verdict—guilty. There are two common types of dashes. In the image below (1) is a hyphen, (2) is an en dash and (3) is the em dash. " A Word, Please: A look at the em dash, the hyphen and their rarely seen cousin, the. Sometimes, the comma indicates a pause that would occur if the sentence were spoken aloud. An en dash is always used without any space before or after it. Em dashes (also known as m-dashes or em rules). Character escapes used in markup include numeric character references (NCRs) and named character references. nouns followed by numerals or letters. An em dash is a punctuation mark used in writing to denote a break or pause. The em dash in American English is a punctuation mark that helps to convey emphasis, introduction, interruption, or a swift change of thought. Another way to create them is to press and hold Alt and type 0151 on a Windows device or select Option, Shift, and the hyphen key ( ‐) on a Mac. It was originally a humorous and slightly sanitized version of the curse word, but it has become the standard form. Notwithstanding its versatility, the em dash is best limited to two appearances per sentence. Commas and parentheses vs. Perhaps the most versatile punctuation mark, the em dash can take the place of commas, parentheses, or colons. Hyphens belong to that category of punctuation marks that will hurt your brain if you think about them too hard, and, like commas, people disagree about their use in certain situations. A hyphen (-) is the shortest “dash” and. In almost every instance, you should place the footnote marker after the punctuation. An En dash is half the width of an Em dash. A hyphen. 2 Answers. In this century, the shorter one is preferred in all main varieties of English. Follow the end quotation mark with an em dash and the action or thought and then another em dash. If the information in parentheses has a question mark or an exclamation mark, use the punctuation mark inside the parentheses only if the sentence ends with a different mark. Hyphens might look like dashes, but they aren’t dashes. The “slightly different” part is, to me, the em dash’s appeal summarized. g. While closely related to other dashes—like the en dash (–) and hyphen (-)—the em dash serves a unique role in typography. — Este libro es mío. “I’ll come with—” In this example, the em dash indicates interrupted speech. It is used to indicate a range of values, such as numbers, dates, and times. By Jessica Bennett. ) Serial Semi-Colon. (Learn more about the difference between a. . There are two common types of dashes: en dash and em dash which vary in length. The em dash “—” and the en dash “–” are the two most popular dash forms. It is wider than an en dash (–) or a hyphen (-). "-", the line in notepad will look like this for e. The em dash, or long dash, is the only punctuation mark on a keyboard that. Quotation from wiki ( Em dash) When an actual em dash is unavailable—as in the ASCII character set—a double ("--") or triple hyphen-minus ("---") is used. Em dashes for interruptions: Use em dashes when you are interrupting the main idea of a sentence. Em-dashes. g. apostrophe. Notice in these examples, the em-dash has no spaces around it, while the en-dash does. For your example: “Well, I thought you—” He stopped himself. Exclamation point. Rule #5. . To create an em dash on a PC, hold down the Alt key while typing 0151 on the numberpad of the keyboard. For further reasons, why you should use T1 encoding, have a look at this question: Why should I use usepackage[T1]{fontenc}? You should use a. Consider the examples below: 3. Chicago 6. On a Mac: En dash—press option+hyphen key. In fact, em dashes can find an even greater role in dialog: they can replace quotation marks, though this is less common in English than in other languages. The closest thing I could find was this: Is it acceptable to place a dash after a question mark? An em dash—or dash for short—is a straight, horizontal line positioned about halfway between the bottom and top of a lower-case letter. An en dash is. En-dash The medium-length dash (–) is called an en-dash (so called because it is approximately the width of a capital letter N in the typeface being used). (I usually just replace all curly single quotes with ' and all curly. There should be no space on either side of the dash, including when it is followed by a quotation mark. | Grammar The em dash performs a versatile function to help separate certain words from the rest of a sentence. APPLICATION. 2 - En dashes are shorter than em dashes. It may be used in place of commas, a semicolon, a colon, or parentheses. Dash: Dashes set off a series within a phrase: “Of the many breakfast options — omelets, waffles, pastries — he only wanted coffee”; indicate a break in thought: “Felipe’s is a popular eatery — in Harvard Square”; or attribute a quotation to an author: “‘You must do the thing you think you cannot do. Dashes are used to separate groups of words, not to separate parts of words like a hyphen does. [Emphasis mine. 2. Wave dash ( ～)Sorted by: 58. The exclamation point and question mark denote strong emotion or a question, respectively. If the second clause starts with who then it will become dependent and therefore won't be preceded by a semicolon. In general, em dashes should be avoided in formal writing because they are often used in place of necessary punctuation, parentheses, or further explanation. 2. I've never heard about en dashes being used for em dashes. For windows, you can hold down the ‘Alt’ and ‘-‘ key and you will get an en dash. Perhaps a door was closed on the speaker’s face, cutting off her sentence. 1. There is nothing wrong — informally at least — with using a dash after a question. Trademark ™ : ALT 0153;There are three types of dashes in writing used to convey different ideas in an engaging way. Insert an em or en dash using Alt and keyboard shortcuts. Em dashes can be used to. . How to create en dashes and em dashes. When injecting a descriptive clause into a sentence, you are free to use em dashes, commas, or parentheses. So, they cannot be linked by comma (Commas are only used to link a dependent and an independent clause). Consider the examples below:3. Here’s how to master the em-dash, exclamation point and question mark. This is giving me writer's block and the paper is due tomorrow. It also has several uses, which we will look at below. To show a break in narration or conversation in place of an ellipsis. Alt codes only work on the. m. The em dash symbol is a single, longer horizontal line — that should not be confused for an en dash - or a hyphen. If you type in two hyphens/minus without a space before or after, most word processors automatically convert it into an em dash. em-dash — Long hyphen (—) named em-dash because the dash historically is the length of a lowercase m. Like parentheses, the em dash can set off nonessential elements; but it does the parentheses one better—it can also set off essential elements. The Spanish names for the hyphen, en-dash and em-dash are guión, semiraya o raya menor, and raya, respectively. 3. Press the space bar. Examples. The dash works somewhat like parentheses or commas, but it is used where a stronger punctuation is needed. Intuition is important to survival: studies show that instinct can beat analytical thinking in a crisis. -->if the information being set off is at the end of the sentence, use just one em dash. Use an En dash as a replacement for the word ‘to’ or to denote a range of numbers. To create an em-dash on a Windows computer, hold down the [Alt] key and type 0151 on the numeric keypad. A numeric character reference in hexadecimal format. 51). This is a common editing mark and has several uses, but its primary purpose is to separate clauses and huge parts of the sentence. ) You can achieve that. net web application. To turn smart punctuation off, all you have to do is go to Settings > General > Keyboard, and then turn off the "Smart Punctuation" toggle. This is a good example of when to use such as dash in a sentence. SQL*Plus inherits character set from. En dash ( –) When connecting two words to signify a range, Chinese generally uses an en dash occupying the space of one character (e. Mac. Go to the system preferences and choose "Language & Text". In fact, there can be great confusion when incorporating dashes in reading and writing. FWIW, my product_codes that have a dash show as a dash (hex 2D). 1969–1981. The raya is used to clarify something, in a similar way to parentheses. ”Command for an Em dash on a mac : Shift-Option-Hyphen; Command for an Em dash on Microsoft Word : Alt + Ctrl + (minus) Em dash in HTML : — or — En Dash. Clark went to the Miami Heat – Boston Celtics game. That being said, em dashes should not be used in place of hyphens or colons. And when em dashes are setting off material that requires a punctuation mark like a question mark or exclamation. It can also be used to indicate each person’s speech in a dialogue. By and large, an em dash serves to insert a break in your thought without ending your thought entirely. SQL Developer is Java based which does not use NLS_LANG settings but SQL*Plus does, so you have to set NLS_LANG properly. In French, the period is not used after abbreviations of measurement: 25 m (mètres), 12 min (minutes), etc. Dashes should not be overused. eg What would be more gratifying than being able to help a child in the use of what Vygotsky considered one of man’s greatest tools? Language! I'm sure others will come to offer advice about the em-dash version, if you prefer that. (Check out more punctuation. An em dash is a punctuation mark used to separate elements within a sentence, typically words or phrases that are too long to be separated by commas or need a dramatic pause during reading. Example: You’ll see him if you look”—she pointed across the street—“just over there. It indicates a longer pause than a comma and a semicolon. Intuition is important to survival: studies show that instinct can beat analytical thinking in a crisis. )This would usually be at the end of a phrase or sentence, which means it will be next to a piece of punctuation. And an example:There are two primary types of dashes: the em dash (—) and the en dash (–). the question mark. In English writing, quotation marks or inverted commas, also known informally as quotes, talking marks, speech marks, quote marks, quotemarks or speechmarks, are punctuation marks placed on either side of a word or phrase in order to identify it as a quotation, direct speech or a literal title or name. (stenoscript) The dash may be written low, along the baseline, or high, at x-height, as convenient for whichever letters it links to. , em dash, en dash, or hyphen), you should put the footnote marker before it. To type the — using the keyboard you can the Alt code from the shortcode section. But instead of eating the period, the em dash will completely bail when they’re about to meet up. Periods (), question marks, exclamation marks, and commas are used as in English. On Macs, the long dash symbol situation is much easier. , page 387–459); while the hyphen is used to connect words that function together (e. An en dash is. It is longer than both the en dash and the hyphen, and its length is equal to the width of the letter “M” in the given font. This technique is best suited for creative or informal writing. g. The em dash (—) is twice as long as the en. A Hebrew period in a traditional serif face usually looks like a tiny tilted square (a diamond; ). as you would the phrase and the rest. Spaniards actually have a bit of a hard time when learning those alternative uses in. In Arabic, which is also written from right. If the parentheses include an exclamation or question mark: Our road trip to Florida — we love to drive to see all the sights on the way! — took three days to. eg What would be more gratifying than being able to help a child in the use of what Vygotsky considered one of man’s greatest tools? Language! I'm sure others will come to offer advice about the em-dash version, if you prefer that. The misplacement of periods and commas is the most common mistake writers make when punctuating dialogue. 90 Em dashes and line breaks; 6. If your keyboard can't produce a dash, you will have to resort to a hyphen as a stand-in. More Punctuation Rules Read all about the most common and rare punctuation marks, from question marks to em dashes and parentheses to interrobangs. They represent something. )The dash (—) is a mark of punctuation used to set off a word or phrase after an independent clause or a parenthetical remark (words, phrases, or clauses that interrupt a sentence). (If you do, up vote that answer. According to CMOS, “in British usage, an en dash (with space before and after) is usually preferred to the em dash as punctuation in running text. That doesn't change the fact that in 60 years of reading, I've never come across a trust-worthy writer using any dash directly after a comma, nor. Note that although this answer cites only CMOS, I'm fairly confident (based on experience) that most major style. Hold down the Alt key, press 0 1 5 0 on the numeric pad, and then release the Alt key. The text won't look as good, but realistically, most people won't notice. This. When you use AutoCorrect Options, you can also click Stop Automatically Creating Dashes, or click Control AutoCorrect Options to open the AutoCorrect dialog box. This eliminates option B. • Dashes are often used to introduce an abrupt change of thought, while parentheses add information. —dijo María con calma. Em dashes can replace ellipses to show an abrupt break in a conversation. To insert an interjection in the middle of a sentence, place one em dash on both sides of the interjected phrase. Treat etc. When it displays it in the application, the dash turns into a question mark !?!?!? I then have an Export button, which writes these back to a textfile. Enclose the first part of the dialogue in quotation marks but omit the comma. Simply type a word, then space, then the. Both the colon and the em dash introduce new information that explains or builds upon something that precedes it. Examples. Should a question mark be used after an em dash that abruptly ends a sentence? Ask Question Asked 1 year, 4 months ago Modified 4 months ago Viewed 168 times 4 I. While closely related to other dashes—like the en dash (–) and hyphen (-)—the em dash serves a unique role in typography. 27, 2015. The em dash is also used for denoting an incomplete speech. – this would be the correct answer because the question is asked within the quotation marks so the question mark must appear here too. 'Break/Fold Mark'. 5. 4. Learn how to use each type in a sentence with these examples and best practices. (Note that AP style does not use en-dashes. Depending on the context, the en dash is read as “to” or “through. When interrupters fall midsentence, always use a pair of punctuation marks to surround them. Aether still appears as a poetic affectation, especially in reference to the word’s ancient Greek and Latin senses, but. You’ve probably heard of hyphens and em dashes, but what about en dashes? Learn what they are and how to use them with this helpful article. First, one is longer: The em dash (—) → which is like two hyphens joined together. S. Technically, the mark designating feet is a prime; the mark designating inches is a double prime. Some word processing programs read the two hyphens automatically as the single mark of punctuation known as. Parenthesis and Dashes: Correct Usage; Question Mark: Definition & Use. In modern usage, a question mark or an exclamation point—but never a comma, a colon, or a semicolon—may precede an em dash. , the India–Pakistan issue) To extend sentences just like colons, semicolons, and three dots (e. Your specific issue regards "smart quotes," "em dashes" and "en dashes. Write with Grammarly What is an em dash? Em dashes differ from other hyphens and dashes not only in usage, which we will discuss shortly, but also in appearance. Technically, the mark designating feet is a prime; the mark designating inches is a double prime. ”. Examples. — Lo siento, no lo sabía. Example: She gave him her answer—No! Exclamation Mark (!) An exclamation mark is used to show emphasis. Typically I replace special characters with plain text but on some occasions desire to replace them with other. You don’t need to worry about this; both en dashes and em dashes do the same job. d) Working 9-5 daily, and keeping up with homework is difficult. That said, let’s look at the two dashes and what makes them different. Have you a reason why you think curved brackets should be abandoned in favour of dashes in this particular example? The linked article doesn't contrast differences in availability or effect between the punctuation variants available. On our way to school, we walk past the Turner Farm—the oldest dairy farm in town—and watch the cows being fed. Em dashes are most often used in pairs to call a reader’s attention to the material they set off, making words, phrases, or clauses particularly dramatic or emotional. It looks like this: — It’s called an em dash because its width is about the same as a lower-case letter em (m). Hold down the Alt key, press 0 1 5 0 on the numeric pad, and then release the Alt key. Anything powerful enough to cross the Wall usually retained enough magic to assume the shape of a soldier, or to become invisible. Yes, the em dash is used in formal writing. An em dash is longer than the en. The Manual of Style explains the differences between the hyphen and four types of dashes. Em dashes join onto the words before and after—like this. On cell phones running Android’s Gboard or iOS operating systems, press and hold the hyphen on the onscreen keyboard. To help indicate this “cut” between the two parts, many poems use punctuation, typically an em dash (—) or an ellipsis ( . How to use en dashes. An em dash or a pair of em dashes may indicate a sudden break in thought or sentence structure or an interruption in dialogue. -Em dashes mark an interruption or break in thought. Parentheses diminish the importance of a phrase, while dashes enhance it. You can use a semi-colon to separate list items when an "item" is a list in itself. How to Create Em Dashes and En Dashes: Em dash (—) Ctrl+Alt+minus (far. I have to warn them—no, no what am I doing? An ellipses indicates omission, which is what I think you are looking for. For example, this sentence just looks plain wrong: Jenny said , “ That’s unbelievable ! ”. "Three—red, white, yellow—are my favorites. After three weeks of deliberation, the jury finally reached a verdict: guilty. 1. You will only be tested on the rules of the em dash, which is what we’ll cover here. For instance, we could use em dashes in place of commas or parentheses: One of the twins—she couldn’t tell them apart—ran to greet her. An em dash (—) is the longest of the three dashes and can be used to set off a break in the sentence, as well as add emphasis. Em dash. An em dash (—) is a punctuation mark. En dash. It’s equal to the specific point size in any given typeface. This technique is best suited for creative or informal writing. I agree that it should try to match the size of the missing word. 8. A hyphen (-) is shorter still. . The following list shows some of the most. Hyphens are not separated by spaces, while a dash has a space on either side. 89), would be to only use an em dash after a period if the period marked an abbreviation: An em dash derives its name from being the approximate width of a capital M. Alternatively, pairs of em dashes are used to mark off additionalAn en-dash is also used in numerical series as in from ten–twenty pieces. 7 p. The web's most comprehensive guide to American punctuation. Command (⌘) + M. For example: It depends on one thing — trust. ” En-dashes are mandatory only for public documents. DASHES. Easily find character codes for the HTML # sign, HTML @ symbol (at symbol), HTML percent sign, HTML ampersand (& HTML code), HTML copyright symbol and HTML caret insertion point, along with regular punctuation like the question mark, exclamation point, non-breaking hyphen, non-breaking space and more. In Unicode, the em dash is U+2014 (decimal 8212). (it will become an em dash. , long-term, red-haired). Em dash shortcut 3 (Mac): If you are on mac, below is a shortcut to help you type the em dash sign in Word. em. 87 Em dashes for sudden breaks or interruptions; 6. They are useful for emotionally-loaded dialogue interruption, because emotions act quickly on the brain. An em dash is the width of the letter "m" in the font and type size being used, and should never be used in place of an en dash or hyphen. The em is the longest in the dash suite. Then, click Undo Dash. . There should be no space between the en dash and the adjacent material. The em dash is the chameleon of punctuation marks. Esempi: When the course finally started — nearly two months after it was organized — the student could not attend. figure dash – 8211: 2013 – en dash — 8212: 2014 — em dash ― 8213: 2015 : horizontal bar ‖ 8214: 2016 : double vertical line ‗ 8215: 2017 : double low line ‘ 8216: 2018 ‘ left single quotation mark ’ 8217: 2019 ’ right single quotation mark ‚ 8218: 201a ‚ single low-9 quotation mark ‛ 8219: 201b. And Words into Type, third edition (1974), without referring explicitly to dashes, also agrees: Direct questions. En and em dashes are longer than the hyphen. As a reminder, scare quotes are used to show when a phrase is being used in an ironic or nonstandard way—or perhaps it’s not a. –5:00 p. Em dash (—) Twice as long as the en dash, the em dash can be used in place of a comma, parenthesis, or colon to enhance readability or emphasize the conclusion of a sentence. This appears when you move the pointer over the corrected hyphen. En dashes (–) represent a range between numbers, dates, and times. Em Dashes The em dash is the longest line among these marks of punctuation (—). Punctuation Marks Wheel : This 2-page print-out makes a punctuation marks wheel; it consists of a base page together with a wheel that spins around. When using an em dash, it is important to consider the spacing around it. Resume the dialogue with another opening quotation mark, complete the dialogue, and end with a period and a closing quotation mark. These dashes differ not only in their length but also in the function they perform in a sentence. The stores were filled with holiday shoppers—even more so than last year. “November Cotton Flower” by Jean. • Dashes are often used to introduce an. “A dash is a mark of separation stronger than a comma, less formal than a colon, and more relaxed than parentheses. [Emphasis mine. Household appliances such as refrigerators and microwaves are. Since code page 437 does not include the en dash character, any system using that code page will have to resort to a fallback mechanism to render the file names, such as a question mark. 8. The long dash is the widest of the three horizontal marks that may be used in the middle of a sentence. For example, don’t use a dash to begin the interrupter and a comma. , accordingly, consequently, for example, nevertheless, so, thus). What Are Dashes? – or — There are two types of dashes: en dashes and em dashes. Note that in British English, the punctuation marks only go inside of the quotation marks if the punctuation is part of the quoted material, although many writers make an exception for periods. In general, the em dash is seen as being more interruptive or striking than other. Em dashes are most often used in pairs to call a reader’s attention to the material they set off, making words, phrases, or clauses particularly dramatic or emotional. Follow.