What is the dash in the middle called?
The dash (—), also called the em dash, is the long horizontal bar, much longer than a hyphen.
How do you type a middle dash?
3. 1. Inserting an em-dash in Word
- For Mac: press “option+shift+hyphen key”.
- For desktop PC: press “alt+ctrl+minus” on the numeric keypad (the number section on the far right of your keyboard).
How do you type a long hyphen?
If you have a numeric keyboard, hold down the Alt key and type 0151 for an em dash or 0150 for an en dash.
What is the dash called between numbers?
En Dash
An en dash is a midsize 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.
What are the three types of dashes?
In writing, there are three different punctuation marks that most people refer to as dashes. These are the hyphen, the en dash, and the em dash.
What is the longer dash called?
em dash
The hyphen (-), the shortest of the three marks, is familiar (sometimes wretchedly so) to most writers. So is the em dash (—), more often called the long dash, or sometimes just the dash.
Do you put a dash in between numbers?
Use a hyphen when writing two-word numbers from twenty-one to ninety-nine (inclusive) as words. But don’t use a hyphen for hundreds, thousands, millions and billions.
What is the longest dash?
em-dash
The em-dash (“—”) is the longest dash in common use. It comes most commonly in pairs and has a function similar to parentheses (i.e. to break the flow of thoughts).
How do you use an em dash in the middle of a sentence?
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.
What are the different dashes?
There are three forms of dashes: em, en, and the double hyphen. The most common types of dashes are the en dash (–) and the em dash (—). A good way to remember the difference between these two dashes is to visualize the en dash as the length of the letter N and the em dash as the length of the letter M.
How do you use a dash in the middle of a sentence?
Use a dash to show a pause or break in meaning in the middle of a sentence:
- My brothers—Richard and John—are visiting Hanoi. (Could use commas.)
- In the 15th century—when of course nobody had electricity—water was often pumped by hand. (Could use brackets.)
Is there a dash longer than an em dash?
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.
Why is it called em dash?
In fact, the em dash is named after its length—it’s about the same width as the capital letter M. Its alphabetical cousin, the en dash, is about the same width as the letter N. Figuratively speaking, the hyphen pulled the short end of the stick.
Does three thirty have a hyphen?
the three- thirty train a four o’clock train the 5:00 p.m. news Usually open; forms such as “three thirty,” “four twenty,” etc., are hyphenated before the noun.