ENGLISH LANGUAGE PUNCTUATION MARKS

Hyphen

8. English Language Punctuation - Hyphen

The hyphen4 is used to connect words or parts of words: it connects the syllables of words broken at the ends of lines, it connects prefixes and suffixes to words, and it connects compound words. The modern trend is away from hyphenation. Permanent compounds tend to become solid, and temporary compounds tend to be hyphenated only when necessary to avoid ambiguity.

8. a) English Language Punctuation - Word Division

Words may be hyphenated at the ends of lines between syllables. Proper places to break words are determined from your favorite dictionary. We prefer

An en dash (which is half the width of an em dash) is available in typeset material. In typewritten material, a hyphen is used in place of an en dash.

In typewritten material, the hyphen represents an en dash, and two hyphens with no space around them are preferred for representing an em dash.

Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged. G.& C. Merriam Co., c.1967. English Language Punctuation - Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary. Merriam-Webster, Inc., c.198

In general, end-of-line hyphens should be avoided when possible. To avoid extremely ragged right margins in unjustified text or to avoid large spaces between words in justified text, words may be hyphenated at the ends of lines. The following guidelines for end-of-line hyphenation are taken from The Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago Press 1982): Words may be divided only between syllables. Consult a dictionary for syllabification. Divisions leaving one letter at the end or beginning of a line are not permissible. Two-letter syllables may be left at the end of a line, but two-letter endings may not be carried to the next line. The last word of a paragraph, page, or similar item (e.g., reference citation, figure caption) should not be divided. A hyphenated compound should be divided only at the hyphen. Likewise it is best to divide solid compounds at the natural breaks (after-body), after prefixes (dis-comfort), and before suffixes (other-wise). Avoid, if possible, several consecutive end-of-line hyphens.


8. b) English Language Punctuation - Prefixes

Hyphens are sometimes used to connect a prefix to a word. The tendency is to eliminate the hyphen after a prefix. Hyphens are always required with the following prefixes: allhalfquarterquasiselfex-

Use a hyphen to attach a prefix to a proper noun or adjective: un-American anti-Arab Hyphenate a homograph (a word with two meanings) that might be misunderstood without the hyphen: unionized recover coop multiply un-ionized re-cover co-op multi-ply

Hyphenate a word that might be misread or difficult to read without the hyphen:

un-uniform post-stall sub-subcommittee When a vowel would be doubled or a consonant tripled, use the hyphen: micro-organism anti-inflation Note: The prefixes co, de, pre, pro, and re are printed solid even if a vowel will be doubled: cooperation preexist Use a hyphen to attach a prefix to a hyphenated compound word: non-civil-service position pseudo-steady-state system

8. c) English Language Punctuation - Suffixes

Hyphens are rarely used to connect a suffix to a word. Use the hyphen to avoid tripling a consonant: shell-like hull-less Use the hyphen when the suffix like is attached to a proper noun.

8. d) English Language Punctuation - Compound Words

Compound words may be (a) permanent, their form (solid or hyphenated) being determined by usage and often appearing in dictionaries, or (2)temporary, being hyphenated. Most permanent compounds tend to become solid (without hyphen) with usage, and most authorities (Bernstein 1981; G.P.O. 1984; and Skillin et al. 1974) prefer to avoid forming temporary compounds. Thus, the trend is away from hyphenation. Compound nouns Most permanent prepositional-phrase compound nouns are hyphenated, and most other permanent compound nouns are solid: right-of-way mother-in-law workbench cupboard

Some noun phrases are in the process of becoming permanent compounds; but although they are defined in the dictionary, they are not yet hyphenated. For example, Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary lists

right-of-way, n. & adj. state of the art, n.; state-of-the-art, adj.

But

The dictionary is the best source for hyphenation and spelling of permanent compound nouns. Formation of a temporary compound noun with a hyphen is appropriate when a combination of several nouns is one entity: wing-body writer-editor Compound verbs Hyphenate an active compound verb derived from a noun form consisting of separate words: Langley flight-tested that configuration. To cross-brace such a structure is impossible. But the passive verb form need not be hyphenated: That configuration was flight tested. Such a structure could not be cross braced.

Unit modifiers Most authorities (for example, Bernstein 1981 and G.P.O. 1984) advocate hyphenating unit modifiers only when necessary to avoid ambiguity. See section 1.5.2; the guidelines for hyphenation are repeated here: A unit modifier should not be hyphenated When the unit modifier is a predicate adjective: The aircraft was flight tested. Note: An adjective that is hyphenated in the dictionary is hyphenated as a predicate adjective: The method is well-known. When the first element of the unit modifier is a comparative or superlative: higher order calculations When the first element is an adverb ending in ly: relatively accurate prediction When the unit modifier is a foreign phrase: a priori condition When the unit modifier is a proper name: North Carolina coast (but Anglo-American plan) When the unit modifier has a letter or number designation as its second element: material 3 properties When the unit modifier is enclosed in quotation marks: ``elliptical style'' symbol list When the unit modifier is a scientific name of a chemical, an animal, or a plant which is not normally hyphenated: nitric oxide formation A unit modifier should always be hyphenated When the unit modifier contains a past or present participle: flight-tested model, decay-producing moment When the unit modifier is a combination of color terms: blue-gray residue When a connecting word is implied in the unit modifier: lift-drag ratio, Newton-Raphson iteration When the unit modifier contains numbers (other than number designations): three-degree-of-freedom simulator, 0.3-metertunnel