A dash is a little horizontal line that floats in the middle of a line of text (not at the bottom: that’s an underscore). It’s longer than a hyphen and is commonly used to indicate a range or a pause.The most common types of dashes are the en dash (–) and the em dash (—).
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What is a dash example?
Dashes replace otherwise mandatory punctuation, such as the commas after Iowa and 2020 in the following examples: Without dash: The man from Ames, Iowa, arrived. With dash: The man—he was from Ames, Iowa—arrived. Without dash: The May 1, 2020, edition of the Ames Sentinel arrived in June.
What do dashes and hyphens look like?
They might all look like lines on a page, but hyphens and dashes serve different purposes. To begin, a hyphen (-) is shorter than a dash (–). Hyphens join words together and dashes indicate range. But that’s just the beginning.
How do you use a dash example?
Use dashes to mark the beginning and end of a series, which might otherwise get confused, with the rest of the sentence: Example: The three female characters—the wife, the nun, and the jockey—are the incarnation of excellence. Dashes are also used to mark the interruption of a sentence in dialogue: Example: “Help!
How do you use a dash in writing?
Do not confuse a dash (—) with a hyphen (-), which is shorter.
- Use a dash to show a pause or break in meaning in the middle of a sentence:
- Use a dash to show an afterthought:
- Use a dash like a colon to introduce a list:
- Use a dash to show that letters or words are missing:
How do you use dashes and hyphens?
The dash is often used after an independent clause. The hyphen, on the other hand, is used to join two words together like yellow-green. It usually does not have a space between the words. Also, the dash tends to be slightly longer than the hyphen, and usually would have spaces before and after the symbol.
How do you use a dash in academic writing?
How to use hyphens in academic writing
- Hyphens are punctuation marks used to link multiple words.
- Use a hyphen to join words together to avoid ambiguity.
- Use a hyphen when two or more words act as a single adjective before a noun.
- Hyphenate spelled-out numbers between 21 and 99 (twenty-one, ninety-nine).
What is dash mean in slang?
If you say that you have to dash, you mean that you are in a hurry and have to leave immediately. [informal] Oh, Tim! I’m sorry but I have to dash.
How do you type a dash in Windows?
Windows
- For an em-dash, hold down the Alt key and type 0151, then release the Alt key. That’s it!
- For an en-dash, hold down the Alt key and type 0150, then release the Alt key. Pretty simple, right?
Where is the dash on IPAD keyboard?
The short (en) dash can be found on the [123] keyboard screen, on the left side, under the “1”.
How do you type a dash on a laptop?
Hold down the Alt key, press 0 1 5 0 on the numeric pad, and then release the Alt key. The en dash will appear in the text field where your cursor is. Write an em dash.
What is a dash and a hyphen?
A hyphen joins two or more words together while a dash separates words into parenthetical statements. The two are sometimes confused because they look so similar, but their usage is different. Hyphens are not separated by spaces, while a dash has a space on either side.
What are parentheses?
parenthesis Add to list Share.When you use parentheses to set off material in a sentence, you say that the material is “in parenthesis.” Put something in parentheses if it’s a comment, an afterthought, or additional information that is possibly interesting but not essential to the subject.
How do you use dashes in dialogue?
The main things to remember are: Use an em dash if the speaker stops mid-word, in the same way as you’d use a hyphen. Put it inside the closing quotation marks. Use an em dash if the speaker’s able to complete a word, but someone or something stops them before they finish their thought.
What kind of dash goes between dates?
en dash
An en dash is a mid-sized dash (longer than a hyphen but shorter than an em dash) that is mostly used to show ranges in numbers and dates. It can also be used for clarity in forming complex compound adjectives. The en dash derives its name from the fact that it is meant to be the same width as the letter N.
Why do you use a dash in a sentence?
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).”A dash is a mark of separation stronger than a comma, less formal than a colon, and more relaxed than parentheses.”
What does 100 on the dash mean?
“100 on the dash get me close to God” is a reference to him risking his life when he speeds and bringing himself dangerously close to “meeting his maker” if something goes wrong.
Where did the word dash come from?
dash (v.) c. 1300, “strike suddenly and violently,” also “move quickly, rush violently,” and, transitive, “cause to strike suddenly and violently;” probably from a Scandinavian source (compare Swedish daska, Danish daske “to beat, strike”), somehow imitative.
How do you type a dash in Google Docs?
Click on your document where you want to insert the dash, open the “Insert” menu, and then click “Special Characters.” After the tool opens, type “em dash” or “en dash” into the search bar and then click the symbol from the results on the left. Note: Several types of en and em dashes show up in the search results.
How do you do a long dash?
The em dash can be used in place of a colon when you want to emphasize the conclusion of your sentence. The dash is less formal than the colon. After months of deliberation, the jurors reached a unanimous verdict—guilty. The white sand, the warm water, the sparkling sun—this is what brought them to Fiji.