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Hyphens, EN dashes, and EM dashes. What’s the difference? And how do you type each of them?

Matthew Ward · 12/02/2021 · 2 Comments

There a three punctuation marks that look like a dash:

The hyphen –

The EN dash – 

The EM dash —

Hyphens

These are used to create compound words like ‘twenty-three’ and ‘four-legged’. 

I’m sure we all know how to type them: one press of the hyphen key.

EN dashes

These guys, which are also known as short dashes, are the same length as a capital N.

They’re used to indicate intervals, essentially replacing the word ‘to’. 

’22 to 29’ could be rewritten ‘22 – 29’. Other examples are ‘Monday – Friday’ and ‘15/02/2021 – 17/03/2021’.

Most word processors, including Microsoft Word, can create EN dashes in a clever way. Just follow these steps:

1) Type the word or number you want before the EN dash. 

2) Hit the space bar. 

3) Hit the hyphen key.

4) Hit the space bar again.

5) Type the word or number you want after the EN dash.

6) Hit the space bar one more time.

The hyphen you typed at step three should transform into an EN dash. 

If this process didn’t work for you, read the section at the end of this blog. 

EM dashes

These guys are named for the same reason as EN dashes. They’re the same length as a capital M. They’re also known as long dashes.

These guys do all the jobs I explained in my most recent blog post.

They’re typed with a similar process to EN dashes:

1) Type the word you want before the EM dash.

2) Hit the hyphen key twice.

3) Type the word you want after the EM dash.

4) Hit the space bar.

Those two hyphens you typed in step two should merge into one long dash. Yet again, if this process didn’t work for you, read the section at the end of this blog.

A trouble with spaces

Let’s quickly get this ‘space’ business straight.

A hyphen never has spaces between it and the words on either side.

An EN dash always has a single space on either side. (The spaces are included in the method for typing EN dashes.)

An EM dash does not usually have spaces on either side. (There are no spaces included in the method for typing them.) If you’re writing news, however, you should know that the style guide for the Associated Press does dictate a space before and after the EM dash. 

The ‘section at the end of this blog’

If the previous methods for typing EN and EM dashes worked for you, you can stop reading right now. If they failed, however, here are some alternative methods I’ve used on a Mac and an HP. 

EN dash on a Mac: ‘alt’ and the hyphen key.

EM dash on a Mac: ‘alt’, ‘shift’, and the hyphen key.

EN dash on an HP: ‘fn’, ‘ctrl’, and the semicolon key.

EM dash on an HP: ‘fn’, ‘ctrl’, ‘alt’, and the semicolon key.

In Microsoft Word on any computer, you can also click ‘Insert’ on the menu, then ‘Symbol’, then ‘More Symbols…’, then ‘Special Characters’, then select the dash you want.

If everything so far has failed and you’re still reading, I have some final comforting words. Everyone can still tell which punctuation mark is which because… 

Hyphens have no spaces:

Twenty-three

EN dashes have spaces:

Sunday - Wednesday

EM dashes have two hyphens:

I go--you go.

And back in the days of typewriters, 
these differences were good enough, 
even if they weren't ideal.
 
Till next time, adios!

And for lots more punctuation pointers, check out My Big Blog Directory.

But if you’d like some entertainment instead, take a look at Glimpses—my free book of short stories.

Filed Under: Grammar Blogs Tagged With: English punctuation, punctuation

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  1. Could I help you write? My Big Blog Directory - Matthew Ward Writes says:
    05/03/2021 at 14:52

    […] When to use them made simple Colons 101 Semicolons 101 Oh, Dash! Hyphens, EN dashes, and EM dashes. What’s the difference? And how do you type each of them? Dashes, Colons, Semicolons—which is right for my […]

    Reply
  2. Oh, dash! - Matthew Ward Writes says:
    05/03/2021 at 18:38

    […] If you need a hand figuring out how to type a dash (since there’s only a hyphen key on a keyboard), or if you’d like to clear up the differences between hyphens, short dashes, and long dashes, fear not. I’ve got a blog post for just those questions. Click here to read on. […]

    Reply

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“What about milk?” Debbie asked. Mark reached for the milk. “Let me see.” He shook the carton. “There’s only a drop left.” “I’ll add it to the list.”

This paragraph includes several mistakes.

The paragraph starts with Debbie’s dialogue. Then, it moves to Mark’s. Then, it returns to Debbie’s. We need to start new paragraphs with each new speaker.

And we need to make sure that information about Debbie is alongside her dialogue, and information about Mark is placed alongside his dialogue.

When we put this into action we get this:

“What about milk?” Debbie asked.

Mark reached for the milk. “Let me see.” He shook the carton. “There’s only a drop left.”

“I’ll add it to the list.”

Now that’s perfect.

Mark, standing in the kitchen and hearing her call, opened the fridge. “I think,” Debbie continued, “we might be low on cheese.”

This paragraph includes a mistake. The dialogue in the paragraph is Debbie’s. Therefore, information that is primarily about Mark shouldn’t be in the same paragraph.

This is how it should be written:

Mark, standing in the kitchen and hearing her call, opened the fridge.

“I think,” Debbie continued, “we might be low on cheese.”

Mark moved one block of cheddar and checked behind it. “No, we’ve got two blocks.”

This paragraph is perfect. It involves Mark’s dialogue and information about Mark.

“Have we got enough groceries to last the week?” Debbie shouted from the living room.

This paragraph is perfect. It involves Debbie’s dialogue and information about Debbie.


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You could choose the most awkward ones if you like!
(I’d probably do that if I were you.)
Then, when I return your paragraphs, I’ll include full explanations of every edit so that you can apply them to the rest of your writing. I’d love to help.
For more information and to take up my offer, click here.
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