Hyphens, En Dashes, Em Dashes
Q. Please, please help. How does one hyphenate this phrase: “twenty-five-thousand-dollar fine” or “twenty-five thousand-dollar fine”? I am not able to find an example in all of CMOS. Answer »
Q. Where does Chicago stand on this “eco” compound word madness? Everything that comes across my desk these days is “eco-conscious, ecobusiness, eco centered,” and of course not a single word of it is consistent. Answer »
Q. How should the following be hyphenated, if at all? Two and a half hours. Answer »
Q. Is “official-rate increases” hyphenated as written? Answer »
Q. I tend to let my ear be my guide—and usually that works—so I need some clarification to ensure I’m on the right track. Can you clarify that I am using my hyphens correctly? Facilitate a core-team workshop to discuss . . . Develop a future-state document . . . Conduct a future-state assessment . . . Identify change-management opportunities. Answer »
Q. I can’t find hyphen placement in ages, such as “fourteen-years old” in the Manual. And what about “years-old”? Is that correct? Answer »
Q. What is your opinion regarding the use of “email,” instead of “e-mail” (no hyphen or hyphen)? Answer »
Q. “We are more than ready to analyze plan design changes.” For clarity would you recommend inserting a hyphen between plan and design? Answer »
Q. I am copyediting a parent resource website and this comes up a lot. How do I hyphenate “this class is for three- to four-year-olds”? Is that correct? I have seen it as: three-to-four year-olds. Answer »
Q. Is it prework or pre-work (for work that is to be done before a meeting)? Answer »
Q. In a scholarly book about popular culture, the author has used several -esque word endings, usually hyphenated. According to CMOS instructions for the similar constructions of -wide, -like, and -borne, I would be inclined to remove the hyphen. But the result is unsavory. Also, in the case of open compounds, should the -esque ending acquire an en dash? See the following: Tarantinoesque, Skeeteresque, Gandalfesque, Billy Idolesque, Sid Vicious–like, John Paul–esque, The Parallax View–esque. Answer »
Q. I’ve tried to Look It Up, and I know other people are curious about this question, too—some of ’em can’t even sleep at night for worrying about it—so I’m writing you, O Mighty Editors, to ask where do the hyphens go in the phrase “two and a half times the price”??? Answer »
Q. Is it: early-fourth-century-AD amphora? What is proper way to handle early fourth century AD amphora? Answer »
Q. When does one use hyphenation to break words? I already looked at the Manual on page 289 and still have some questions. I have heard that when the text has a jagged right edge no hyphens should occur and when text is justified it is allowed. What about magazines, leaflets, fliers, catalogs? Can one be more liberal in these and if so is there some guideline on this? Answer »
Q. I work for a travel company and we are trying to figure out the proper way to write “eight-night stay.” I feel the number should be spelled out with a hyphen, while other people feel “8 night” is correct. I’ve been trying to find an answer in the style guide, but no luck. Thanks for the help. Answer »
Q. In a previous Q&A, a curious reader asked you to weigh in on the subject of hyphenated Americans. You responded that “ CMOS prefers not to hyphenate Americans of any sort, even when they appear in an adjective phrase.” Were it actually an adjectival phrase, like “apathetic Americans,” I would be inclined to agree; however, I maintain that the examples “African-American,” “Asian-American,” and even “Native-American” (or as I prefer, American-Indian) are all compound proper nouns and must be hyphenated. They are not merely Americans who happen to be African, but rather African-Americans—a distinct ethnic and cultural group. Irrefutable logic? Answer »
Q. Are poets allowed poetic license to do practically anything with punctuation? I ask this in view of a poem by Emily Dickinson that seems to use the em dash in bewildering and inscrutable ways. Answer »
Q. A bill has been proposed dealing with price gouging. Would it be correct to write Anti-Price Gouging Act or Anti-Price-Gouging Act? I have seen it both ways. Answer »
Q. Which phrase is hyphenated correctly: “a three-to-four-pound chicken” or “a three- to four-pound chicken”? I’m inclined to go with the former because the phrase refers to a chicken weighing between three and four pounds. However, copy editors and proofreaders tend to prefer the latter example. Answer »
Q. Hi. I work for a county auditor’s office which publishes a voters’ guide for each general election and primary. Each candidate writes his or her own statement to the voters, as do supporters and opponents of ballot measures. In the interest of space and fairness, we limit the number of words each writer can use. Our recurring question: should we count a hyphenated word group (such as “32-year-old”) as one word or three? I’m in favor of counting such constructions as one word. What’s your vote? Thanks! Answer »
Q. According to CMOS table 6.1 (14th ed.), a noun plus a participle would have a hyphen, and the prefix “non” is a closed compound. So, my question is how would you hyphenate the word “nonlife-threatening” or would you avoid such a word altogether? Thanks. Answer »
Q. The menu in our cafeteria shows that enchiladas are available “Tues.–Fri.” However, when I ordered one on a Wednesday, I was informed that enchiladas are available on Tuesday AND Friday, not Tuesday THROUGH Friday. When I informed the cafeteria manager that this was incorrect, she seemed shocked and refused to change the sign. Please help determine who is correct! Answer »
Q. Would you hyphenate “less skilled workers” or “more efficient method”? Section 7.90 of CMOS 15 (subsection 1: adverb not ending in ly + participle or adverb) indicates that compounds with “least” and “most” are usually open. If you would hyphenate, or if you wouldn’t, what is the reason? A colleague and I do not hyphenate such compounds, and we haven’t for years, but we can’t quite say why. Any insight you can provide would be appreciated. Answer »
Q. I’m copyediting a novel in which the author has gone hyphen-mad. She is fond of such terms as “horse-yard,” “juniper-wood,” “yard-gate,” “cedar-grove,” and so on. I want to defer to an author’s stylistic preferences, but I feel too much is too much. In most cases, the meaning seems perfectly clear without a hyphen. What can I say to this author? Answer »
Q. Dear CMOS, I am experiencing a meltdown at work. My colleagues believe that “test taker” is one word, while I believe that it should be hyphenated as “test-taker.” I am also unclear, after reading the CMOS, about another form of this phrase, “test taking.” If I write, “It is an important strategy for test taking,” should “test-taking” be hyphenated? Thank you for your help. This has become a highly debated issue within our office and I would love to resolve it once and for all. Answer »
Previous Page | Next Page
