Table of Contents
- 1 When should a dash be used in writing?
- 2 Why use a dash and not a comma?
- 3 What type of dash should I use?
- 4 What is the difference between dash and hyphen?
- 5 What are the uses of dash?
- 6 What is the difference between hyphens and dashes?
- 7 What is thepunctuation sign the dash?
- 8 What is a dash used for in grammar?
When should a dash be used in writing?
A dash is a horizontal line that shows a pause or break in meaning, or that represents missing words or letters. Note that dashes are rather informal and should be used carefully in writing. Dashes are often used informally instead of commas, colons and brackets. A dash may or may not have a space on either side of it.
Why use a dash and not a comma?
An em dash is most often used to indicate a pause in a sentence. It’s stronger than a comma, but weaker than a period or semicolon. Em dashes can also signal a sudden interruption, particularly in dialogue: “Wait!
What is a dash punctuation examples?
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 type of dash should I use?
The en dash is approximately the length of the letter n, and the em dash the length of the letter m. The shorter en dash (–) is used to mark ranges and with the meaning “to” in phrases like “Dover–Calais crossing.” The longer em dash (—) is used to separate extra information or mark a break in a sentence.
What is the difference between dash and hyphen?
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.
Can a dash replace a comma?
In informal writing, em dashes may replace commas, semicolons, colons, and parentheses to indicate added emphasis, an interruption, or an abrupt change of thought.
What are the uses of dash?
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. Dashes are used to separate groups of words, not to separate parts of words like a hyphen does.
What is the difference between hyphens and dashes?
When to use a dash mark?
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).
What is thepunctuation sign the dash?
The dash is a punctuation mark that is similar in appearance to the hyphen and minus sign but differs from these symbols in length and, in some fonts, height above the baseline.
What is a dash used for in grammar?
Dashes are often used to signal an abrupt change in a sentence, indicating that the reader should pay close attention to what comes next. A dash can be used to add emphasis at the beginning, middle or end of a sentence.